


coloring book

by yoonyuten (sunflowerhsh)



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Artists, Fluff, M/M, Mentions of burnout syndrome, Osaka, Painter Ten, Strangers to Lovers, Tour guide nakamoto yuta, author has a thing for color palettes, god bless kun, painter yuta, ten doesn't like deadlines, yuta has a good fashion style
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:22:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 22,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25798111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunflowerhsh/pseuds/yoonyuten
Summary: The stranger hums, then nods. "I said that you look like you hate being here," he repeats.Ten nods slowly, apparently, he isn't as discreet as he thought if even a stranger can tell. "It's not that I hate being here, I hate that I'm not enjoying it like I should be," he huffs out, disheartened.
Relationships: Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Nakamoto Yuta
Comments: 14
Kudos: 35
Collections: the eyes are the window to the soul





	coloring book

**Author's Note:**

> Hello it's me again. I want to thank again the loml who helped me with this fic, [Angie](https://twitter.com/toorublemaker) I love you. I hope you like this, it's made with love. How many times am I gonna say love in the same paragraph? stay tuned.

If going to a foreign country you don’t know the language to isn't a very good idea, buying plane tickets in a rush must be an even worse one. But Ten feels like he needs to get out of where he is, even if it means leaving Bangkok for a while. His mind is already crumbled; he feels bottled up, trapped. Nothing worthy comes out of him. He feels empty with no motivation, a boulder drifting in space with no way forward. It has been months since he last painted something he didn’t want to immediately rip apart. At this point, it's only a matter of time until his manager starts calling him asking for new pieces. He wants to paint, he really _really_ does. But he ends up hating everything he paints; a handful of unfinished canvases lay around his studio all of them in different stages of completion. Everything feels gray, lifeless, no spark to catch, no feeling blooming. Ten wonders if that's how he is now perceived, if that's how he truly feels.

An impromptu trip is not the best idea, but it's the only thing Ten can think of at the moment. Maybe for a couple of months? But where to? What would be a good place for this gray aura he’s been carrying around to vanish and for the vibrancy he remembers to come back anew? Deep inside he knows this trip is going to be fruitless but he wants to try either way. He's not ready to give up his dream, what went wrong and why did he realize when it was too late for an easy fix? He was doing just fine a couple of months ago.

But then his work started getting extremely popular and he was so consumed by it that he suddenly stopped going out, always cancelled the plans his friends made up to get him out of his studio, worked with an incredible frenzy most days, taking cat naps when he could, living out of coffee and eating whatever Kun pawned off to him just long enough for him to be satisfied with making sure he wasn’t gonna drop dead out of the blue. The only responsibility he never failed was feeding his cat out of the enormous love he had for her and because it made him feel guilty to wait until she cried out from hunger.

And then one day, colors just vanished from his world. Everything felt monotonous, his work started becoming repetitive. He kept questioning himself, is this how it’s always been and I’m realizing until now? Was everyone just faking it when they complemented his work? How did I make it this far? Always the the same landscapes, brush strokes that were once confident and as easy as breathing, became shaky, unsure, weak. Was it because his life became a routine? His clients didn't seem to notice, always praising his pieces and giving him compliments that rang shallow in his ears.

Ten starts pacing back and forth around his apartment, trying to come up with a good place to visit. He stops abruptly, remembering how much he wanted to visit Japan after that art exhibition he went to a couple of years ago. The theme was nature, and included works from a selection of renowned young artists who interpreted Japan's beauty on their canvases. He felt in love with many pieces by an artist called Nayu. He didn't know much about them, their identity anonymous. He tried looking for information but only his art came on display. Nayu had a distinctive style; his brush strokes were heavy, almost careless, but at the same time they felt strongly calculated. His vision of the world was surreal, Ten felt both jealousy and admiration for Nayu.

With no more appealing options in mind, Ten easily takes his decision, Japan. He wants to see if the world Nayu displayed on their pieces is like the actual one. He quickly grabs his laptop to book his tickets. Ten can't fully comprehend how he ended up booking plane tickets at 2am, but since it's already a bad idea, he buys a one-way ticket for a flight leaving in two days (more than enough times for him to pack and to wrap up whatever lose ends he has). He also makes a reservation for a decent looking hotel in advance, just to make sure he has somewhere to sleep.

He should really go to bed. His trail of thoughts got interrupted by a soft meowing, his cat Selene, comes into the room gracefully strutting, and softly flops into the bed.

'Hi pretty,' he coos. Selene meows at him and gets closer, urging for Ten to pet her. Her fur is white and fluffy, soft to Ten's touch. 'I'm sorry baby, I'm gonna have to leave you with aunt Lisa for a while,' Ten mumbles while he pets Selene. 'I'm gonna miss you princess,' he says regretful.

Maybe Ten should tell his friends he's going to leave for a while, and also he needs to find a way to tell his manager without him freaking out. He decides to call them later, he's finally getting sleepy, which is good because he has been having trouble sleeping lately. Ten takes off his glasses, plugs in his phone to charge and gets into his bed. Selene perched at the edge of the bed, accompanying him on this lonely night.

The next morning, Ten calls Lisa to tell her about his trip to Japan, she seems to understand the why better than he expected, Ten’s relieved he doesn’t have to give a big explanation. After a two-hour call with Lisa, he finally manages to convince her to take care of Selene while he’s gone, she was hesitant at first, but Ten reassures Selene likes her enough so she doesn’t have to worry about getting scratched.

Talking to his manager is what Ten dreads the most, he knows Kun is going to get mad at him for leaving in such a short notice, with a huge list of unfulfilled orders in tow. Murphy's law at work, as he paces around his apartment with his phone in hand, the door opens. Ten knows is has to be Kun, he’s the only one with access. He stops in the middle of the room and greets him trying to sound as casual as possible, “Hey Kun.”

“What’s with your face, you look constipated,” Kun says while he puts some bags on the kitchen counter.

“We should sit down, I have something to I need tell you”. Kun looks at him with an apprehensive expression but nods, and heads to the living room.

“Did you throw a canvas through the window again?” Kun guesses, as he sits down on the couch.

“What? No! Kun, that was one time, it’s not that. Jesus Christ now I’m embarrassed,” he exhales defeated. Kun starts laughing, this is officially already getting out of hand.

“Alright, I’ll stop pestering you, it’s just that you looked a bit conflicted so I was trying to get you to relax,” Kun confesses. Ten nods and offers him an earnest smile, he’s really thankful to have Kun as his manager. Kun has been working with him since the starts of his career, there’s no one in the world who understands his work ethic better than Kun.

It’s now or never, Ten thinks. “Kun, I’m leaving to Japan in two days,” he breathes out.

Kun’s eyes go wide. “What do you mean by leaving? You still have artworks to finish,” he says in a stern voice. Ten knows the scolding is coming, he can feel it, so he scrunches his eyes.

One second passes, two seconds… but it never comes. He slowly opens his eyes and Kun is frowning but there´s concern in his eyes. “Why are you leaving, Ten?” he mutters. Ten wants to cry, it feels like Kun can read through him, like he’s been slit open for Kun to see.

“I need some time alone, I don’t feel comfortable here anymore,” he pauses to collect his thoughts. “I hate every single piece I paint, I cannot even finish a piece without feeling like it’s ruined,” He says with a shaky voice. Kun gets closer and wipes his tears with his hand, Ten didn’t realize the moment he started crying.

“It’s okay, let it all out.” Kun pats his back. “I’ll just extend the deadline date and call your clients to inform them.”

Ten can only nod, he struggles so hard to find his voice but the only thing he can let out are whimpers.

He calms down eventually, didn't notice Kun disappearing at some point. When he comes back, he's carrying a tray with two cups of tea and some biscuits. "I thought you'll be hungry after all the crying," he offers a tiny smile.

"Thank you," Ten is overwhelmed, he thought this conversation was going to end up as a disaster. Turns out he wasn´t as slick as he thought and Kun noticed he was going through something.

"Do you want me to help you pack?", Kun asks while he busies himself with his cup.

"I already gave you plenty of work to do, I'll be fine packing by myself"

Kun makes an affirmative sound and sips his tea. "Just please keep an eye on Selene, Lisa is going to take care of her while I'm gone."

"I'll make sure to visit Selene every week, don't worry."

Airports are always a hassle, too many people, a lot of steps to get through. Ten is already exhausted, he took more time than expected packing and now he was tired, hungry and in need of caffeine. He hopes this trip is worth all of his efforts. At the same time, he's lowkey excited, he wonders if he can find any Nayu exhibitions when he gets to Japan, or more information about them. That's the thing Ten's actually looking forward to.

He manages to board the plane on time, Ten sighs as he gets on his assigned seat, not sleeping has finally taking its toll on him. He closes his eyes and get lured slowly into unconsciousness. The flight on its own wasn’t too bad, but that probably because he slept through most of it.

Ten feels slightly better as he gets off the plane and out of the airport. He takes a big breath, _finally_ , he thought. Narita airport is located at the outsides of Tokyo, Ten decides to take a train to the city. Bless the person who thought about putting all of the instructions in English as well, it makes it easier for him to not get lost and actually board the right train to Tokyo.

_Warm brown, gray, cream, beige and pale yellow_.

Those were the colors that adorned the view from the train to the outside. Ten laughs, not so different from the buildings back at home and it leaves a bitter taste on his mouth. He decides to occupy himself by trying to locate the hotel where he will be staying at, he has plenty of time to kill.

Once again, technology proves to be a life saver, Ten gets to his destination with no problem.

He glances around.

_Warm brown, creme, terracotta, gray and white_ , 

When will he feel like he’s out of the same place? He reluctantly gets off bed, he needs a shower badly and his skin is screaming for moisturizer and serums. After he completes his night routine, he finally flops back to bed, exhaustion knocking him out to a dreamless sleep.

🌸🌸

_Blue, orange, yellow, red._

3:24 am. Ten peeks through his window, Tokyo Tower is really beautiful at night. Light reflects through the glass, giving the room an iridescent glow, painting the walls with royal blue, violet and orange. A different tone from what the tower looks in daylight, colored with reds and white. It’s way too early to be awake. After rolling over his bed for what felt like an eternity, Ten decides to start planning the days he will stay in the big Tokyo. He also needs to look for information about Nayu.

He asks the hotel staff about the art galleries, one particular staff looks stunned, since according to him they mostly get asked for popular tourist spots. But after the initial shock, they’ll send him an e-mail with all the information they have. It turns out, the hotel has a long list of art galleries in Tokyo. Ten is impressed. Ten thanks them wholeheartedly, and quickly returns back to his room. He stares at the new email, looking at the dates, titles and addresses of each exhibition taking place that month.

_Apricot, yellow, lemon green, dark green_

Ten spends the rest of the week visiting art galleries, trying to find more information about Nayu and enjoying his time. Looking at new painters’ works, appreciating art and more importantly, not thinking about his own art, because that’s the one thing that can make his mood sour rapidly. When did he begin start feeling repulse towards his own work? He can’t recall the last time he painted something that wasn’t gray. In contrast, the canvases he sees daily at the exhibition are bundles of colors, reds, yellows, greens. He’s not sure why there’s a feeling dangling inside of him that makes him feel weird while staring at those works, jealousy? Regret? Maybe just plain sorrow.

Sightseeing proves not to be Ten’s favorite activity, too many people gathered around, too much noise, too much sun. He doesn’t get inspiration by visiting these places. The imperial castle and the east gardens are stunning beautiful places. He decides to take some pictures, the only thing that’s preventing wrapping up this day as a complete failure. He’s definitely not the best photographer, but has learned some techniques in the past, he prays for his shots to be better than his mood. He doesn't enjoy going out anymore, the day is beautiful but he but the sun doesn’t warm his cheeks, the landscape doesn’t make him feel refreshed, he doesn't feel like he's breathing fresh air, it´s just _lonely_.

He thinks that the most beautiful thing about Tokyo are its streets: _Red, burgundy, green, gray._

Colorful with different styles and vibes, going out to walk becomes one of his favorite things to do, even for the short amount of time he's been spending there. His mind gets busy trying to analyze the intricate details of a street art, trying to put together the message they wanted to convey. Morning walks became the most productive part of his day. He can’t call his stay at Tokyo fruitless, if only for the few pieces of information he gathers about Nayu while visiting galleries. That they reside in Osaka, that the person who delivers the pieces for the exhibitions is a woman who claims not to be Nayu but their agent instead, and that there’s a Nayu art exhibition happening in Osaka. So he goes back to the hotel, it’s too late to travel so he settles for dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, he goes to his room after and gets everything ready for tomorrow. He remembers to reply to Kun’s messages that have been piling up. Just Kun being worried for him, updates about his clients and pictures of Selene. He smiles at his phone screen, he really misses them both. He tells Kun he’s been doing fine, that he ate already and that he will be heading to Osaka the next morning. He plugs in his phone and tries to sleep; he has a long day ahead of him.

Ten decides to go for a morning walk, to say goodbye to the colorful Tokyo streets and to collect himself. What is he going to do when he reaches Osaka? What if he doesn’t find Nayu at all? Not that he thinks Nayu was going to solve all of his problems, but he surely wants to ask him about what inspires them, some techniques and more importantly, why keeping his identity a secret?

Ten has to take the bullet train to Osaka, the hotel staff gladly got his ticket delivered to the hotel and told him how to get to the station, explained that the trip was 2 hours 30 minutes so he better charge his phone and tablet for the trip. He's finishing up with the packing when his phone starts ringing, it's an unknown number but he picks up anyways.

"Hello?"

"Is this Mr. Li Yongqin's number? We're calling from the Solarium Galleria," a voice says in English with a slight accent.

"Yes, you're talking to him. Can I help with anything?" He replies a little bit confused.

"We got an email saying you're currently in Japan and plan to visit our exhibition here in Osaka. I'm calling you sir, to confirm your visit, so we can offer you a closed gallery while you enjoy your time without unnecessary distractions."

Ten hums, "That wouldn't be necessary, I want you to treat me as you treat regular clients, I'm not in Japan for official business, I'm here for personal matters so I would really appreciate if you don't make a fuss about my visit."

"I understand Mr. Li, we are very sorry for the intrusion."

"It's okay," he sighs. "I'll still be visiting the gallery tomorrow; I'll gladly talk to you there. Have a nice day."

"Likewise, Mr. Li. We will be waiting for you."

He sits down on the bed, how did they know he was in Japan? Maybe some staff from the galleries he visited these days recognized him? He talked with many people who worked there asking for Nayu, but he didn't think he was going to get caught.

_Gray, white, blue, yellow_

When he gets to the station, the first thing he notices, with dread already pulling in his stomach, is the huge amount of people there is. He quickly walks through the multitude with his head already pounding, he doesn't like it. When the train arrives he practically runs to get inside, gets on his seat and puts his headphones on.

Ten doesn't understand when did he get so uncomfortable with people. He used to be a social butterfly, talking with everyone about anything that came on his mind. Enjoyed chatting with clients, asking them about their jobs, pets, kids. Having conversations with the old ladies he sat down with on the bus. He doesn't even know why he's scared of, maybe people thinking he's boring now, that he can't keep up a conversation like before. He tries to brush off these thoughts and absentmindedly starts sketching on his tablet.

It's already past noon when he gets to Osaka. The Osaka hotel is similar to the one he stayed at in Tokyo; classy decorations, comfortable bed, nice view and good food.

Trying to rest proves to be not so easy as it seems, he ends up tossing around the bed with a mind clouded by thoughts. He is just wondering if this trip is worth all of the hassle, thinking about all of the canvases he still has to paint to meet the deadlines Kun gladly arranged for him on a document. He still only sees gray, and maybe tones of brown and beige. Japan doesn't seem to be as different as Thailand. He doesn't feel trapped anymore but the emptiness just won’t leave.

Morning comes announcing the sunlight loud and clear, golden reflections kissing sweetly every inch of the room, falling carefully on Ten's cheeks, warming up his body, keeping him away from darkness. He slowly drifts from dreamland and open his eyes.

_Gold, yellow, orange, gray_.

He lets out a groan, regretting not closing the curtains the night before.

9:00am

At 11:30am he is in front of the Solarium Galleria, thirty minutes after their opening hour. It feels unlike the galleries he’s been to before. It looks mesmerizing, golden columns that rise to the sky to converge into an intricate circular pattern at the middle of the building. High ceilings and walls of glass, adorned meticulously with greenery that grows healthily through the columns.

The door is opened, looks just like the rest of the building, a combination of glass and gold bars. The inside of the gallery is an open space, artworks scattered around, would look like a right mess if you don’t pay attention to the details, they make the shape of a sun.

The canvases are hanged on golden structures that remind Ten of a fancy mirror. He can’t see the streets outside; this glass is designed for you not to get distracted while looking at the art. He can't help the smiling; this is just something out of this world.

"Welcome to Solarium Galleria, Mr. Li", a petite woman with long brown hair wearing a light pink suit announces in English. "My name is Grecia and I'm gonna be at your service today. The exhibition’s name is entropy, by one of our best local artists, Nayu,” she enunciates with a proud voice.

"Hello, it's nice to be here. This gallery is beautiful." He says with sincerity.

"We are glad you like our building, please feel free to ask anything you want to know. Would you mind if I step aside so you can enjoy the exhibition, Mr. Li? She asked in a polite tone.

Ten agrees with a nod, and Grecia silently goes back to the reception desk he hadn't noticed before; the area has a crystal-clear desk with a sunflower pot at a side.

_Gold, yellow, green, white_.

This is definitely a new experience for Ten, he's used to white walls, ceramic floor tiles and square frames from traditional galleries. He walks to the first painting, thick paint strokes in black, that contrast with a bright yellow background. Harmony formed with sprinkles of blues and reds. Looking like the exact moment when you reach catharsis, when a superfluous amount of emotions reach their peak.

He moves to the next canvas, a beautiful, even poetic dance of purples and pinks that move to the compass of a thin but strong brush that stops when it reaches the center. An orchid blooms through the purple bindweeds. Every work proves to be entirely different from the previous one but at the same time, they are connected by a simple detail that you would miss if you didn't put enough attention. Ten takes his time absorbing all of the details of the paintings in front of him, so rich in color and in emotions that he starts feeling overwhelmed.

He steps in front of a particular piece, that is placed strategically at the center of the sun figure. He doesn't understand why this one is here, it's blue. It has a gray background painted with a spatula, so he can see all of the rough edges, has shadows painted in brown and it looks like an old wall. With oceans of blue dripping from every angle, collapsing in different directions. He didn't notice when he started tearing up, quickly takes a step back and a big breath.

He stands there, rigid, in the middle of the room gaze unfocused. He hears Grecia's voice coming from afar, "Would you like a cup of tea Mr. Li?" She voices with concern. Ten can only nod, and hope his legs don't betray him on his way to the reception.

So that’s what Nayu meant when he titled the exhibition ‘Entropy’, a fitting title honestly. He was experiencing so many emotions at once, unpredictable, he didn’t understand it until this precise moment. A weak laugh leaves his mouth.

_Fuschia, soft pink, peach, orange, purple._

Grecia takes him to the back of the gallery without saying a word. She guides him to a beautiful garden; roses, peonies, lilies and irises adorning the surroundings. He sees a wooden table in the middle, so he walks toward it. Taking a deep breath, he looks around, taking in all of the details. It's refreshing, being outside with all the colorful flowers sunbathing. The place looks taken care of, but it doesn’t feel like its open to the public. He takes out his phone to snap some pictures of the flowers, he’s so distracted by it that he didn't realize Grecia left and came back with two cups of tea. He quickly sits down and takes his cup, with a murmured _thank you_.

"I feel like you needed some fresh air, we usually don't let visitors here but you're different," she states. "It´s been a while since I’ve seen someone who seems as moved by Nayu as I am, back there you looked like you saw a ghost after seeing that painting."

"Thank you, this place is stunning, the colors are so vivid and the flowers are beautiful," he replies.

"I'll let my girlfriend know that Li Yongqin liked her garden."

Ten's eyes go wide, and looks at Grecia with confusion. A melodious laughter is instantly heard, she’s laughing at Ten's expression.

"I take it you're surprised, but yes, my girlfriend and I are the owners of this gallery," she states with a lovely smile on her face. "We worked so hard for it to happen, I'm happy it's finally getting some recognition."

"This gallery is different from the rest," he stops and adds quickly. "Not in a bad way tho! You transport people to a different setting, and I think you can appreciate the artworks even more. People often tend to say galleries are boring, but you scratched that entirely with your beautiful building," he tells her with a serious tone.

She shoots him a shy smile. "Thank you, Mr. Li."

"Please call me Ten," he pleads. Ten suddenly reminded of why he’s here, and quickly adds, "Is there any chance that you know Nayu?"

Grecia puts her cup down and shakes her head. "No, Nayu is still a mystery for us, we know he is a young man because of his agent. Her name is Kahoru and apparently she's also his sister, she constantly calls him a brat so we guess he's younger than her." She pauses, "but if he's a young man like you, I'm very impressed. His art is unique."

"I agree, he's nothing like the rest of the painters I've met. He has something distinctive, but I still can't place what it is." He confesses. "I'm actually here trying to find him, this is a bit embarrassing."

"I can give you Kahoru's contact, we're close acquaintances. That wouldn't be a problem, but I don't know if Nayu will accept a personal visit," she mumbles. "He's kind, sometimes he sends us plants in cute pots with a small letter expressing how thankful he is that we always accept his exhibitions, as if those weren’t famous already. So, he won't be rude to you even if he says no."

"That would be very helpful. Thank you, Grecia. I have no words to thank you enough."

"No problem, just bring your exhibition here whenever you’re ready," she says with a smile and gets up. "I have to go back to the reception, feel free to stay here as long as you please."

Ten nods and bids her goodbye. So Nayu is a man, probably his age, finally something is working out for him. He has tangible information; with his sister's contact he can beg her to let him see Nayu at least once. Ten really hopes he can convince her, that's his new goal.

He goes back inside the gallery, Grecia seems busy taking a call, but signals him to get closer, and hands him a business card. He thanks her and finally exits the gallery.

The sun is setting, time really goes by fast when you're doing something that you like. Solarium Galleria is located near a park, so he decides to watch the sunset from the park. May as well do some tourism while he's there. The Nagai Park has lots of flowers and greenery from what Ten can see, as well as trails for cycling or exercising. He walks to a bench and looks back to the sky. Truly breathtaking.

If you ask Ten what's the most beautiful part of the day, he will say the sunset without a moment of hesitation. A beautiful mixture of colors that paint the sky from yellow to blue, from orange to pink, from red to purple. His favorite colors, the colors of the sunset. He smiles, the sunset looks glorious today, it's a mixture of orange and yellow announcing that the day is finally over, before the stars make their debut adorning the blue sky.

He takes out his phone, trying to capture the beauty of the sunset, regretting not bringing his camera today. After he's satisfied with some pictures, he puts his phone back on his pocket.

He stares back at the sky, now fully dark, with the stars dancing to the appearance of the moon. After a busy day, his mind finally starts taking a toll on him. He looks at the moon, so beautiful, so elegant, so bright. It's such a magnificent night, but Ten feels drained. How is he gonna get better if his mind is betraying him after such a good day? What’s the point of tomorrow then if all days are the same? He’s annoyed, he doesn't want to feel like this.

"Why do you look like you hate being here?" A voice startles him from his internal monologue.

Ten furrows his brows and looks to his side, he didn't notice a young man sitting at the other end of the bench. "I'm sorry? I didn't hear you," he explains.

He properly faces the other man, he's young, like him. Long brown hair tied up in a high ponytail, deep brown eyes, pointy nose, full cherry lips and with a face with exquisite bone structure. He is easily the most beautiful man Ten has ever encountered in his life. Like he just came out of a fashion magazine, or from the art books he used to study.

The stranger hums, then nods. "I said that you look like you hate being here," he repeats.

Ten nods slowly, apparently, he isn't as discreet as he thought if even a stranger can tell. "It's not that I hate being here, I hate that I'm not enjoying it like I should be," he huffs out, disheartened. Why is he saying this to a stranger?

"That's probably because you're not visiting the good places with the right person," he points out. "I never do this, but you look like you need a friend, I'm Yuta," he says while extending his hand.

Ten quickly takes it for a handshake. "I'm Ten."

Yuta sits back facing the sky, "Osaka is full of colors, I'm sure you will enjoy your visit, how many days are you staying?"

"I don't know, didn't plan that yet." He confesses.

Yuta looks at him with curious eyes, shoots him a smile and says, "Let's go." He grabs Ten's hand and starts walking. "This park is awesome, why were you all alone there?"

"Looking at the sunset," he blurts out. Really? That's all you can articulate Ten? He wants to slap himself.

His hands are warm and soft, it wouldn't hurt him if he spends some time with Yuta, he has nothing else to do.

Yuta takes him to the other side of the park; where there's more people walking around. Teenagers, adults, elderly and children playing around, all of them illuminated by the moon, enjoying the night.

Ten feels like the park has life on its own, the grass looks brighter, healthier, as if enjoying the people who visit its grounds. The night stops being silent, taken by the melody of laughter and chatting. He looks to his side, his hand still connected with Yuta's, but he doesn't seem to mind. He looks up to Yuta's face and he is smiling widely, such a beautiful smile, with pearly white teeth and full of light. Yuta's smile is contagious because he finds himself grinning as well.

"Let's go." Yuta starts walking to the trail that people take for a walk around the park. Ten follows closely, maybe a walk is the solution for his clouded mind.

"How many days have you been in Japan?", Yuta asks absentmindedly.

"A little more than a week, I visited Tokyo first," Ten replies nonchalantly.

"Going by your tone, I take you didn't have fun in Tokyo."

"I, only visited art galleries while I was there. The other places were too crowded," Ten confesses.

"You don't like crowded places, noted. Also, you like art that's amazing, makes it easier for me to plan the Osaka tour," he replies with enthusiasm and a smile.

"I guess..." He pauses. "Thank you, Yuta. You really don't have to do this."

"Nonsense, is my choice to help you, I have nothing interesting to do anyways."

Ten nods. Weird. It doesn't make sense that someone so young has so much spare time unless he's unemployed or something like that. Or perhaps he’s self-employed.

"Yuta?" He mutters.

Yuta hums in acknowledgement.

"What do you do for a living? I'm worried you'll get fired if you spend too much time with me"

Yuta looks at Ten as if he just said the most hilarious joke and starts laughing, very hard. And that's the best sound Ten has ever heard, a melodious laughter full of colors.

"Ten, you're so funny. Don't worry about that. I'm in the middle of a holiday, you could say. Finished a big project a couple of days ago." He grins. "So you don't have to worry about me getting fired."

_White, pastel pink, fuschia, brown_.

They have been walking for a while, the park is proving to be bigger than Ten expected. This trail comes to an end at a field of cherry blossoms trees. When they come into view, Ten takes a deep breath, the trees are definitely a sight, he can't comprehend how can nature be so effortlessly beautiful. The mixture of pinks blends so well with the reflection of the lights that adorn each tree. With the grass colored pink by the falling flowers, it looks like belongs to a different world.

"Ah, that's right!" Yuta claps his hands together. "You should take pictures with the cherry blossoms. Hand me your phone, I'll do it for you," he says while extending his hand.

Ten doesn't have the heart to tell him he doesn't like taking pictures of himself, so he nods and gives him the phone.

"Okay! Perfect! Just stand up in front of them and smile." He guides Ten to the spot he considers best and gives him a thumbs up.

"Smile, Ten," he says while he positions the phone.

Ten's posture is rigid, but he tries to loosen up a bit and smiles awkwardly.

"You're a natural, you look good."

Ten immediately feels his cheeks heat up, he groans and thanks Yuta.

Yuta laughs again, he’s sure he'll never forget that laugh.

"C'mon, Ten. Let's take a selfie in front of the trees." He grabs Ten's arm, pulling him closer.

Yuta smiles wide and Ten can't stop himself from smiling too. He hopes the picture turns out good.

After almost 20 pictures of them posing around all of the trees, a young woman offers to take a picture of them. Yuta agrees with sparkly eyes and a big smile.

"Please tell me when you're ready so I can count to three," she yells from where she is holding Ten's phone.

"We're ready!" Yuta says loudly.

"1, 2, 3. Say cheese!"

Ten smiles and Yuta quickly put his arm around Ten and shoots a peace sign.

"Thank you so much for taking this picture".

"It's nothing, I'm glad I could help. You make a great couple," she responds in Japanese.

Yuta's eyes go wide and he looks like he’s thinking what to reply but she bows and starts walking away. He sighs.

"What did she say?"

"Nothing special," Yuta blurts out. "Ah! Would you look at the time, we should go find something to eat." And walks away.

Ten quickly follows him. What did that lady tell him? He looks uncomfortable.

Yuta takes him to a small family restaurant, not too far from the park. Despite the hour, the place is full. It has a homey atmosphere, a place where you can sit comfortably and have a nice plate of homemade food at a reasonable price. He’s sure it must be popular amongst university students.

The waitress seems to know Yuta because she smiles as soon as she sees him at the front door, and waves at him. She welcomes them inside and guides them to a table at the corner of the place, where there's less people. They exchange some words in Japanese, she hands them the menu and goes back to serve other tables.

They sit silently while they read the menu. Ten wants to order but the menu is in Japanese. He eyes the menu nervously; Yuta seems to catch Ten's crisis because he suddenly says, "you should try this one." And recommends some noodles and other dishes for him to try. Ten smiles at him thankfully and agrees to his options.

The waitress comes back and Yuta start telling her their order. She smiles, nods while writing it down on a notepad. She goes back and leaves them to get their orders done.

Ten never had trouble with starting a conversation, but he is a little bit nervous about talking to Yuta. He just doesn't know what to say at the moment. Yuta, on the contrary, is an expert at this field.

"This restaurant is very famous here, the food is delicious. I hope you like it."

"I'm sure I'll like it, I took your recommendations. If anything, if I love it it’s all thanks to you." Ten points at him.

"I guess you're right, but, I have excellent taste in food," he says proudly.

Ten laughs. Of course this man has to be handsome and confident, God help him.

"We should get to know each other better if we're gonna spend these days together," Yuta says absentmindedly.

"Sure, ask anything you want to know."

"Where do you come from? Your English is very good."

"I'm from Thailand, I learned English at a young age, that's why I'm comfortable with it." He pauses before asking, "have you always lived here in Osaka?"

"Yes, I've lived here all my life, I do go abroad sometimes for work. Enough about that though, do you like cats? This is a very important question," Yuta looks at him with serious eyes, as if it was a life or death question.

Ten chuckles. "Yes, I’m a cat person. I have one back home, her name is Selene," he sighs. "I miss her already."

"Selene? Like the goddess of the moon? Ah, you thought her name thoroughly. I love cats, mine is staying at my sister’s. Her name is marshmallow." He grins.

"Marshmallow? Cute." Ten laughs, "Do you have pictures of her?"

Yuta nods enthusiastically and pulls his phone out. He still looking for pictures of Marshmallow when the waitress comes back with their food. It looks delicious, Ten is suddenly aware of how hungry he is. The waitress finishes serving and excuses herself.

"Ahhhhh, it looks good. Let's eat!"

He wipes his hands while Yuta presses his hands together and chirps a quick _itadakimasu_. They eat in silence, but it’s not awkward. Ten doesn’t feel suffocated, Yuta’s presence is tranquil, even soothing. He eats delightfully, best dinner he has ever had since he came to Japan. After eating, they fight about who’s paying the bill. Ten loses but vows to pay for the next one.

_Dark blue, violet, yellow, gray._

The night sky is magnificent, a dark canvas splattered with sparkly diamonds that steal the spotlight of anything else that dares to show up beside them. Dazzling lights that illuminate the street, painting a beautiful atmosphere for the lonely souls that wander under the big obsidian. The weather is pleasant, it’s fresh and cool. Even though his clothes are suddenly too thin to be outside, it’s comforting.

“Where’s your hotel? It’s getting late,” Yuta asks, putting his hands inside his pockets.

“Oh, I’m staying at the Imperial hotel.”

“You should take a cab, it’s your best option at this hour.”

Ten can only nod, while Yuta quickly calls a taxi for him.

“I’m sorry I can’t send you home by myself, didn’t bring my car,” Yuta says sadly. “Text me when you get to the hotel! Good night Ten.” He closes the taxi door and gives a little smile.

“Thank you, Yuta. Good night,” Ten says sincerely.

The drive back to the hotel is uneventful, the streets are definitely emptier, but the city lights make it look harmonious. The taxi driver doesn’t talk much, which he’s grateful about.

When he gets back to his room, he goes through his day, that started at the gallery and ended with meeting a charming stranger, who not only is very funny but also offered to show him the city. Oh! He almost forgot, he sends Yuta a ‘hello it’s ten, I’m back at the hotel, did you get home safely? Good night.’ After that, he goes to take a much needed bath.

When he comes back, he has two new messages from Yuta:

‘Hey, awesome. Yes, I’m back at my apartment.’

‘Good night, I’ll text you our itinerary for tomorrow later’

Ten replies ‘thank you, that would be great, I’m excited’ Ten feels something strange blooming from his stomach, brushing it off he decides to sleep.

Yuta planned the whole day. From breakfast to dinner, everything is detailed in a lengthy message text. Ten is surprised, it’s true that Yuta has lived here his whole life but putting together an agenda isn't easy, it makes him feel special. And here it is again, that strange lingering ache on his chest whenever he thinks about Yuta helping him, his beautiful smile, his laugh, his kindness, Yuta. Get it together man, its been less than a day.

'I'll go pick u up'

'9:00am for breakfast' Are the messages he receives after the schedule.

That night, Ten finally lets Morpheus take him into his loving arms.

Ten groans as his phone rings from the night table. 'What the hell is going on?' He opens his eyes reluctantly. The room is bright, the sun already up in the sky.

Wait.

"The sun is out!" He screams, kicking the sheets off his body he makes a grab for his phone.

9:10am

3 missed calls

Yuta: you up?

Fuck, _fuck_ , **_fuck_**. He overslept.

He quickly dials Yuta's number.

'Good morning, sleeping beauty.'

'Yuta, I'm so _so_ sorry. Give me ten minutes, please. You can come upstairs, I don't want you waiting there alone,' he lets out in a single breath.

'Calm down, I'm fine.' He laughs. 'I'll wait for you at the lobby, you better hurry up tho.' And the line goes dead.

Right, he better get changed fast then. He starts by sprinting to the bathroom. A shower later and he's almost ready to go. He decides for jeans a simple white tee and a red cardigan.

_Orange, white, brown, black._

When the elevator dings, he runs to the lobby. Ten stops in his tracks when he sees him sitting down on one of the couches. Yuta's hair is tied up in a looser ponytail, strands of hair adorning his face. He's wearing round sunglasses, that accent the bone structure of his face. His lips look soft and are tinted with a rosy color. He's wearing a white denim jacket with a black tee underneath, black jeans and boots. Looking like a rock star, he sits unbothered scrolling through his phone.

He glances up, as if he felt Ten's gaze on him. He smiles and stands up to meet him.

"Took you long enough," he says while putting his hand on his chin as if he's thinking. "But you look pretty so I'll let it slide."

That has to be a low blow, how is he so charming? Is it so easy for him to say those things? Ten is sure his cheeks are red, his whole face feels hot.

"Well, I think you look really cool," he says with his eyes glued to the floor.

"Hmm, thank you. I did try to dress up," Yuta confesses. Ten looks at him with a raised eyebrow and laughs. 'Let's go, you must be hungry."

_White, beige, warm brown, gray._

Yuta takes him to a coffee shop. According to him, this cafe is famous for their tea ceremony, their pottery and ceramics exhibitions. The walls are monochromatic, painted white that blends well with the items presented to the public. A variety of ceramic pieces from different artists are displayed across the cafe on top of different wooden surfaces. The air feels lighter, tranquil. Ten can feel his body relax and his mind calms down. Yuta orders tea for them and they sit on a rustic shaped table.

"I thought you'd like this place."

"I do like it, it's very homey like yesterday’s restaurant but not," Ten tries to explain.

The teapot is made from a metallic material Ten can't seem to decipher, painted in dark green, blending with the rest of the place. The tea tastes delicious; it's so different from what he's used to drink, it's bitter but he can appreciate the earthiness of it.

"Their desserts are pretty good too, if you want to try something?"

"Sure thing, let’s ask for your favorite one."

The pecan pie Yuta picked is delicious. He can't stop eating it, trying to savor it while it lasts. Yuta watches him with a smile plastered on his face, as if he's watching a child eating.

"Slow down," he says while giving Ten a napkin.

Ten, with his cheeks full, takes the napkin and cleans up his face.

"Do you want to take a look at the exhibition?", Yuta asks.

Ten finishes chewing the last piece of pie and nods. This week's exhibition is filled of hand painted ceramics. The style pattern of all the pieces happens to be heavily inspired by kintsugi, expect that the cracks are painted on instead of it being actually broken and put back together. It's beautiful, how there are just so many talented people expressing themselves through different forms of art.

They exit the cafe shortly after looking at the last pieces.

"So, Mr. Tour guide, what's next?", Ten says while he walks beside Yuta.

Yuta chuckles. "Next, we're going to Osaka's castle."

_White, gold, green, pink._

Photographs don’t do the castle any justice, its magnificent structure sitting atop of a concrete platform that contrasts the bright colors of the building.

The park that surrounds it, is beautiful. A trail of cherry blossoms trees that guides you to the castle and a colorful garden, with a variety of flowers that bloom in harmony with the rest of this magical place.

"Did you bring your camera, Ten?"

Ten looks at him. Somehow Yuta blends really well with the surroundings, even wearing those clothes, he looks as pretty as all of those cherry blossom trees. If Ten had to choose one color to describe Yuta it would be pink. Pink symbolizes happiness. It’s in his loud laughter, in his beautiful smile, in his bright eyes, in his kind heart. Pink is the color that the sky turns when the sun is setting.

"I forgot about it," he replies regretfully.

"It's okay, we can use our phones this time." He puts his arm around Ten's shoulder. "Cheer up! Let's go see the flowers, I think you're gonna like them."

The park is huge, a lot of greenery and trails for people to walk without disturbing nature. Ten feels like he was teleported to another world. He feels like he can breathe properly, his eyes taking in all of the colors of the landscape.

They wander around the place for a bit. Yuta insists that Ten must go to the museum, so they go. After that, they reach the garden. Ten gasps, he can't believe his eyes. The garden is dazzling, he can't believe there are so many flowers blooming at the same time. He takes his phone out and starts taking pictures of them. He can feel Yuta's gaze on him.

"Ten, let's take a picture."

"Sure thing." He knows better than to say no to Yuta by now.

🌸🌸

Yuta takes him to a family restaurant, wooden furniture, light brown tables, chairs with green cushions and menus in English. The tables are mostly full, families and friends chatting while they eat their dinner, laughing and sharing time together. Since Ten can read what the menu says this time, he tries to order by himself, but since he doesn’t really know what dishes are good, he glances timidly at Yuta who’s looking at the menu with furrowed eyebrows and pursed lips.

“Did you decide what do you want to eat?”, Yuta asks as he puts the menu down.

“Weeell, since you’re the expert, why don’t you recommend me some dishes.”

“Sure, let’s order some appetizers and some other plates for you to try different dishes.”

Ten nods. Yuta is truly the best, always so understanding and kind. “I’d like to eat pork if possible.” He nods and gives him a thumbs up.

Yuta places the order quickly; he must be hungry after spending all day outside. But they had a lot of fun, it’s crazy how his mood changed gradually through the day. Ten is taken out of his internal musings by a ringing phone, he absentmindedly looks for his, but then notices Yuta looking at his own phone and picking up the call with a sigh before he stands up. “I have to take this, I’ll be right back.”

Is it him or did Yuta look annoyed? Who could possibly be calling him for him to react that way? Ten can’t help but to think it must be work related, since that’s how he looks when answering his own job-related calls. Bless Kun for handling most of them. Ah! Kun! It’s been a while since he talked to him. He sends Kun a quick text, ‘I’m alive, don’t worry. I hope you’re doing fine without me.’ and put his phone back as he sees Yuta approaching the table. He looks even more annoyed than when he took the call, what in the world happened?

"I'll take you to the hotel after eating, I forgot I had to meet my sister tonight," Yuta tells him as he sits back down.

So, there _is_ something going on, Ten doesn’t want Yuta to be late because of him. “If it’s urgent you can go now, I can go back to the hotel by myself, don’t worry,” he assures him hastily.

“What are you saying?” Yuta gives him a small grin. “There’s no way I’m leaving without eating first, are you crazy?” He mocks.

And that’s all Ten needs to feel reassured.

The rest of the dinner goes by smoothly, both of them too busy eating to talk much. And yet it isn’t awkward at all, only their company necessary for the food to feel great.

“I’m so full,” Yuta says putting his hands over his stomach. He’s so dramatic.

“We should hurry if you have to meet your sister afterwards.”

“Right.” Yuta doesn’t really look to excited to see his sister. He wonders if they see each other often.

_Violet, lilac, light blue, indigo_.

Ten goes back to his hotel room with a full stomach and a smile plastered on his face. After almost two weeks of being in Japan he feels good enough to work. He checks his phone, he has several unread messages that can wait, nothing will ruin his mood. He opens the list of unfulfilled orders Kun sent him, 4 digital art petitions and 6 hand-painted ones. Without a canvas and paints available he decides to start with the digital commissions. He’s relieved that he only takes general themes as specifications, so he can actually expand himself how he wants to.

He looks for his iPad, gets a glass of water and sits down at the desk, playing whatever playlist he finds first. He goes back to the list and picks the commission with 'flowers' as its theme. He starts sketching out his favorite flowers from today's tour, small bundles of purples and blues, from light to dark shades, contrasting with the green leaves that surrounded them. Blooming sparks of magenta, red and light pink catching the attention of any curious eyes.

After several hours, his wrist starts hurting, so he decides to call it a night. He stands up and stretches, his back aching as a reminder that he overdid it. He looks at his art, it's not bad. Definitely better than everything he has painted in the last couple of months. He quickly sends the document to Kun before he starts nick picking everything. 'I actually got some work done!!!' he types. He gets a thumbs up emoji from Kun and a 'well done, I think it's beautiful'.

He smiles at the screen. He really doesn't deserve Kun, he replies with a Selene sticker with hearts.

Colored flowers.

Right! He almost forgot. He rummages through his clothes, frantically looking for Nayu's assistant's business card. After making a mess of his luggage he finds it. It's too late to call, but there's an email attached, maybe that's the best option lest he forgets again.

He quickly writes an email explaining that he would _really_ like to meet Nayu, talk about his artworks and offer him an opportunity to showcase his work at a gallery in Thailand where he's a co-owner (he’s sure Lisa won't mind) and that it would be better if it's in the next couple of days since he's visiting the country for a business trip. He finishes it by apologizes for the late hour and hits send.

He checks his phone again before going to bed, he has an unread message from Yuta. 'Let's meet for lunch, I'm gonna be busy in the morning,' it reads. Ten puts his phone down, he was excited to go for the hike Yuta listed on the schedule, perhaps it can be moved to another day. He groans. A hike did sound nice, Yuta said the park where he went for hikes was great and had a great view to the city. He replies, 'it's okay, I’ll see you later then. good night' and a smiley cat sticker. Ten wonders if something went wrong with his sister, family issues or something like that. He tries not to overthink it, and tries to convince himself that Yuta is still a stranger even if they navigate one another with the comfort of old friends. He's more comfortable with him that with people he’s known for years.

He goes to bed thinking about a garden full of flowers and a man with a beautiful smile.

A knocking sound abruptly wakes Ten up. He opens his eyes, trying to figure out where the noise is coming from. Someone's knocking his door? He doesn't remember calling for room service, his phone reads 9:15 am. When the knocking doesn't stop, he gets up reluctantly. When he opens it, he takes a step back, not expecting Yuta to be there in all his glory, outside of his room.

"I thought we were meeting for lunch," Ten says a little bit confused.

Yuta puts his arm behind his head. "Yeah, sorry about that. I just got bored by myself."

"Oh," it's all Ten manages to say. Yuta’s wearing black jeans and a patterned button up shirt. His hair is down and he's wearing glasses. He's carrying a leather bag on his shoulder and a paper bag on his other hand.

"Right, no problem. Get in." He takes the paper bag from his hands, waits for Yuta to come inside to close the door, and puts the paper bag on the desk and sits on the chair.

"I still have to get some work done, I'm helping my sister with some emails," Yuta says sounding apologetic. "Do you mind if I finish here?"

"Go ahead, I'll go get ready."

Yuta nods, "I brought some cupcakes from my favorite cafe, I figured you haven't had breakfast yet."

Ten picks up the paper bag again, and takes out a chocolate flavored cupcake. His favorite. He really wants to cry, why does Yuta have to be such a gentleman? It makes it harder for him. "Chocolate cupcakes are my favorite. Thank you, Yuta." He smiles and takes a bite. Delicious. "You can use the desk, just put the iPad aside."

"Thank you"

Ten sits on the bed with his legs crossed, these cupcakes are delicious and Yuta looks so pretty today. The view is just the best, he contemplated while happily munching on his cupcake.

After two cupcakes, he goes get ready for their day. He grabs whatever clothes he finds first and heads to the bathroom. Stealing a glance at Yuta, he can see him with his eyebrows furrowed while angrily typing. He chuckles.

"Do you mind if I play some music?", Yuta asks without tearing his eyes from the computer.

"No, that's fine. I'll go take a shower."

Once he’s done, he figures it wouldn't hurt nobody if he puts some makeup on. He’s been into makeup for the longest time, however he can’t remember when was the last time he went out all prettied up. He wants to try some today. He's not a professional, but he has acquired some skill for eyeliner and eyeshadow; he lines his eyes thinly, fills his eyebrows in and highlights the brow bone. He puts on some lip gloss on, bless Lisa for giving him Fenty beauty on his birthday.

"How's it going?" He asks Yuta as soon as he’s done.

Yuta looks at him, hands quiet hovering over his phone, eyes wide and his mouth forming a tiny 'o'.

"Ten." It's all he says, covering his mouth. Yuta walks to where Ten is, looks at him and smiles. "You look stunning," he says as he puts his hands over Ten's shoulders.

Yuta is close, too close to him. Ten is afraid he can feel his heart beating faster, and the redness of his cheeks, that is definitely not the blush he put on minutes ago. Yuta smells like jasmines, with a mix of something sweeter, Ten loves it.

"Thank you," Ten mutters. "It's been long since I did my makeup"

"I love it!" He smiles at Ten. Yuta puts his hands back and walks back to the desk, going back to his previous task. "I'm almost done" he sighs, "I'm so tired of this, but my sister had plans with her husband today."

"Such a good brother," Ten laughs.

"Well, you can say so."

_Yellow, warm brown, blue, pink_.

"This place is insane," Ten breathes out. "When you said we were going to a fishing restaurant I wasn’t expecting something this amazing."

The restaurant was huge, spacious enough to accommodate two gigantic wooden ships in the middle of big pools of water that reminded him of the ocean. The petiribi wooden tables were located inside the ships, giving the customer the best place to eat their fresh fished food. At the sides of the ships were the pools full with different types of fish and other marine animals like lobster, crabs, shrimps.

"I bring you to the best places and the best places only." Yuta grabs his hand and they walk toward the pools to get their fishing started.

"I'm not good at fishing," Ten confesses.

"It's okay, it's just for the fun!" Yuta replies while handing him a net.

They spend more time than intended trying to catch some fish. In between loud laughter, pterodactyl screeches from Yuta and many failed attempts, they finally manage to catch one fish.

When they get to sit down at the ship tables, Ten feels like he is once again in another world, with Yuta as his partner in crime, who doesn't hesitate to order many dishes for Ten to try. Ten simply smiles, loving Yuta's enthusiasm.

A waiter arrives with a plate that has the fish they caught, cut nicely and ready to eat. Ten has never been more excited to eat fish.

"It looks good," he mumbles.

"I think you're just hungry," Yuta says and pours some soy sauce. "Try it first then, my guest."

Ten looks at Yuta, he doesn't find any trail of satire on his face, so he takes the first bite after quickly cleaning his hands. "Woah! Yuta, you have to try this." He quickly picks another piece and shoves it into Yuta's mouth, Yuta looks startled but chews anyways.

"You're right, it's delicious," he says between munches.

Eventually, all of their food arrives to the table. Ten is delighted, everything looks so good and colorful that feels like he needs to take a picture to remember this moment (and this food and this person), quickly snaps some pictures before Yuta starts pinching the food with his chopsticks.

"Ten, I know this is for the gram but I'm hungry," Yuta huffs.

"I'm almost done."

After the photoshoot, they start eating. Yuta doesn’t waste time and goes straight to the fish and lobster he ordered. Ten gives him napkins because he knows by now how messy of an eater he can be, it would've probably bothered him if it was another person but Yuta is just endearing, he can't even get mad at him for eating like a baby.

_Blue, red, yellow, white._

After a delicious lunch, they head to a shopping district called Amemura. Ten is hit with many different colors at once, tall buildings, bright billboards, loud music and people wearing creative fashion looks. He doesn’t particularly like places with big crowds, but he enjoys shopping so he’s gonna have to endure it and have a good time.

“Stop biting your lips, they’re gonna bruise,” Yuta warns him. “I know you don’t do well in places like this, but trust me, you’re gonna love it.” He grabs Ten’s hand. “Just hold my hand and you’ll be safe.”

“Alright Mr. Tour Guide, show me the way,” Ten lets out trying to sound like he’s not dying a little bit inside. Yuta’s hand is warm, it’s comforting how it makes him feel slightly better.

Yuta takes him to different stores, proving again his amazing taste in clothing and accessories. They try many outfits, laughing along the way when they pick ridiculous combinations. They let the employees be the judges to their showdown, Yuta winning most of the rounds due to having what he calls a superior fashion sense. Ten thinks it’s little unfair, considering Yuta knows exactly what are the trends in the japanese fashion, Yuta tells him to stop being a sore loser and ends up explaining what some of the trends are and makes him try outfits he personally picked for him. It’s the first time Ten dresses up like this, in what he personally calls the Yuta rock star style, but he feels powerful. He loves it. He ends up buying most of the outfits Yuta chose for him, he can already feel Kun scolding him for spending so much money on clothes, but then again, it’s the first time he goes out in months.

With many bags in hand, they walk to Yuta’s favorite accessory store, the place where he gets all of his earrings. Ten is giddy, he loves the earrings Yuta has been using since they met. The place is smaller than what he expected, turquoise walls and golden shelves with plenty of earrings, piercings, necklaces on display. A young man with long black hair welcomes them in, even handshakes Yuta and introduces himself as Takuya. 

“I’m looking for dainty earrings for my friend,” Yuta chirps and brings Ten closer to where the young man is.

“That’s oddly specific,” Takuya says as he looks at Ten, “but I get where you’re coming from.”

He shows them a big display of studs with delicate designs, tiny jewels of different colors and pearls. Ten is in love, all of them look beautiful. He can’t wait to try some of them on.

“Choose some for me, Yuta. I’ll do an ear and you do the other.”

Yuta makes an affirmatory hum, and takes a look at the earrings, then at Ten’s ear. He puts his hand under his chin and furrows his eyebrows. He’s thinking really hard about it. Yuta ends up choosing studs with pastel coloured gems shaped as constellations, stars and a moon earring. Somehow he also ends up convincing Ten into getting a tragus piercing, saying ‘the moon earring would look so pretty there, Tennie’ and he can’t really argue with that (Ten tries to pretend his knees didn’t go weak at the nickname). For his choice, he goes with the same theme Yuta picked, and selects a pair of pastel pink studs, with hearts, sun and moon shaped earrings.

“Nakamoto-san, we recently got a new batch of navel piercings. Wanna see?” Takuya asks Yuta.

Yuta has a navel piercing? There is no way this man can get even more attractive.

“Sure, kinda got bored of the one I have right now.”

Takuya shows him the small display of piercings, a lot of flowers and other funny shapes. There’s one that really stands out for Ten, the belly ring is rose gold, with an iridescent stone and a moon charm. He takes it with his hand, it’s gorgeous, and it would look just right on Yuta’s belly button.

“Oh! I like that one, Ten.” Yuta takes the piercing out of his hands. “Takuya, I’ll take this one,” he says as he lifts his shirt, revealing two red rubies sitting prettily on his belly button. He’s really going to be the end of Ten, he thinks as Yuta clumsily changes the piercing. Endearing.

They exit the store with a smile plastered on their faces with a promise of ‘the most delicious coffee you’ve ever tasted, Ten’. Yuta takes him to a coffee shop that packs its coffee in cute little bags with fruit patterns. Ten orders an iced vanilla latte and Yuta an iced americano to go. Continuing their adventure at the modern jungle, Yuta takes him to The Silver Ball Planet, a vintage pinball arcade. More than 20 different machines to play with, he’s ecstatic. With red floors and dim lights, it’s the perfect place to beat Yuta’s ass at pinball. They go from game to game, playing a round each to see who does better, in between sassy remarks and playful pushes they end up using all of the coins. Ten’s belly hurts from laughing, he bets Yuta’s throat hurts too, he really lets out the loudest screeches when he loses.

Playing really takes a toll on Ten, he’s hungry already. “Yuta, can we go eat now?”

“Let’s eat takoyaki!” He yells happily and takes Ten’s hand to drag him outside the arcade in an amazing speed. “There’s a place nearby.”

There’s indeed a takoyaki place close by, a small restaurant with very friendly employees. They take their order with a smile, Yuta pays in cash because Ten is out of it, but also because he thinks he’s slick paying whenever he goes to the bathroom. The staff takes them to an empty table to wait for their order. Which comes surprisingly quick, the food looks marvelous. Yuta ordered 4 types of takoyaki so he could try more of them. Ten takes his phone out again, the battery already low after taking so many pictures through the day, and snaps some shots to the food, and of Yuta who’s already munching the food. They eat in silence, too busy savoring the takoyaki to care about carrying a conversation. The food is over faster than they expected.

Walking down the streets at night gives them a different vibe, there’s the same amount of people but they carry themselves differently, looking more fitted for the nightlife. Ten stops in front of a blue building that has different doors painted on the sides, inside a big brown door there’s another smaller door made of wood. “Alice on Wednesday” say the golden letters on top of the door, he wants to enter this place so badly.

“It’s a theme store based on Alice in Wonderland, wanna go in?”

“Yes, please,” he says almost vibrating. He follows Yuta through the small door. There are chess tiles on the floor, black chandeliers and red walls the store looks like it could be a room in the red queen’s castle, with a heart shaped throne at the end of the hall. Charms, bags, phone cases, hairpins, keyrings, earrings, necklaces, bracelets and more are all stacked on shelves and displayed on different tables. As well as ‘eat me’ and character shaped cookies, ‘drink me’ beverages and other candies are offered. Everything looks delicate and like it just came out of the story, Ten doesn’t even know what to buy. He glances at Yuta, who’s busy looking at the accessories, inspecting them closely before putting them back.

“Which one do you like?”, Ten asks as he moves to where he is.

“These earrings are so pretty.” He shows Ten earrings with the figure of an ace of spades and an ace of hearts.

“I love those, let’s buy them,” he blurts out. Yuta looks at him with his lips in a pout. “I mean, you can take the ace of spades and I’ll take the other one.”

“Cool,” he says with a smile.

Ten ends up buying the earrings, a heart shaped ring and some ‘eat me’ cookies. He takes pictures with Yuta on the heart throne before leaving the store.

Sunlight makes its catwalk into Ten’s room, brightening every corner with golden light that occasionally reflects on the mirror like flashing cameras. He flutters his eyes open, feeling the sun rays on his skin. He needs to start closing the curtains at night. With a sigh, he reaches for his glasses and phone to check the hour.

6:00am. He groans, it’s way too early to wake up, but he doesn’t feel tired so at least there’s that. Ten mindlessly scrolls down his Instagram feed, to see how his friends have been doing while he’s not there. He then decides to check his email, he’s almost done when he spots an email from Nayu’s assistant. Ten starts reading it without much hope, he doesn’t think it would be so easy to schedule a meeting with him.

No way.

He said yes! Nayu accepted his proposal for a meeting. He did it! He’s meeting Nayu, he lets out a happy squeal and starts jumping on the bed. After a couple of minutes, he sits back, and rereads the message ‘We really appreciate your consideration. He would like to meet you next Thursday, 3:30pm at Bird Coffee. I’ll link you the address below. Please confirm your availability for that date, and if there’s anything else you can arrange the details with Nayu himself.’ Ten hastily types his agreement.

_Black, gray, brown, green, yellow._

With music on, Ten excitedly gets ready for this day. He’s visiting Universal Studios with Yuta, can’t hide the fact that he’s looking forward to it. He goes with a white graphic tee tucked inside some black jeans, black belt and his round framed glasses. His breakfast arrives by the time he’s done getting ready, he enjoys his food with a cup of coffee. With some time to spare, he decides to complete another order. This one’s theme is the city, he goes for his favorite Tokyo street as inspiration, with vibrant primary colors and thick black lines. The process goes smoothly for once, mostly because he gives himself no room for second thoughts about the design or the color palette; he just goes with the flow, drawing without letting his brain process what he’s doing until it’s done.

At 10:00 sharp, Ten receives a call from Yuta to let him know he’s already waiting for him at the lobby, Ten grabs his bag and heads out. He really doesn’t have any trouble looking for Yuta, considering how he drives in all of the attention. Today his hair is tied up on a half ponytail, some strands adorning his face and he’s wearing a white shirt, a black and purple bomber jacket and black jeans. He looks good in everything he wears, or maybe Ten’s opinion is just biased.

At Universal Studios, Ten ends up losing a round of rock paper scissors, which means they have to go to the Harry Potter themed part first instead of Jurassic Park like he wanted. For a more meaningful visit, Yuta insists they first get sorted into the houses to buy the uniforms afterwards. They both get sorted into Slytherin, which surprises neither of them. Ten thinks they look particularly good dressed in black capes and green ties, he asks Yuta to pose for pics.

They go to the Hogwarts castle tour, laughing at the talking paintings, taking pictures in the halls and classrooms, acting like they’re students there. Later they reach Hogsmeade, where all the stores are located, they walk through the village, visiting Ollivander´s to buy their respective wands to reach their final form of wizards for a day. Then they stop to buy different sweets, candies and chocolate. Ten buys a chocolate wand and Yuta gets chocolate frogs. Finishing their walk by them interacting with the magic stops and drinking some butterbeer. They also ride the attractions, with Yuta ending a little bit dizzy after the last ride they decide to go for a walk and then they head over to the Three Broomsticks restaurant to finally eat.

It's late afternoon when they finish their wizard tour, with adrenaline still pumping on their veins, they finally get to ride the Jurassic park attractions. They laugh at the picture taken in the ride, their faces looking hilarious in mid scream, and buy a copy each. With that, their adventure is over.

Ten invites Yuta to chill by the pool of the hotel. He agrees with the condition that Ten treats him to dinner. So, they end up sitting on a table at the restaurant that is in front of the pool, accompanied with some cocktails and 80’s rock music as background. Dinner is artisanal pizza, this restaurant´s specialty, with 3 types of meat and cheese that drips off of the pizza. Yuta hesitates to grab the first slice, probably guessing that Ten would like to take a picture first. He takes some shorts as fast as he can while still getting decent shots so they can eat soon, even some candids of Yuta who’s face looks unreal underneath the yellow lights.

It turns out the pool looks very appealing to Yuta, he asks Ten for swimming trunks so he can get his much wanted dive and manages to convince Ten to join him for a night swim. Cocktails getting warm at a side of the pool while they splash water to each other and laugh under the moonlight.

🌸🌸

Yuta insists on talking Ten to a spa, in his words 'the biggest spa in Osaka' so they head there very early in the morning, with only coffee on his stomach. The place is gigantic, it looks more like a resort than a Spa and he's digging this concept. They start with the hot water springs; the rooms are apparently themed with different places of the world, Yuta choses the Greece room because it's an herbal bath. It's relaxing, exactly what Ten needs at this moment. The aromatherapy really does wonders for him. They move onto the rest of the hot springs, and take a break to have a healthy lunch, talking about the spots they still have to visit. Followed by the stone saunas, mud spas and to end it, a massage.

"After this, what do you say to getting dressed up to go clubbing?", Yuta asks while they're both laid down on their stomachs getting a massage.

"Sounds good."

With massage over, they go back to the lockers to get changed. Ten looks at himself on the mirror, his skin looks a thousand times better and it also feels refreshed. All of the knots on his body are gone, his limbs feel like jelly; he could really take a nap right now.

"You can sleep when you get to the hotel, I'll pick you up like at 9pm," Yuta says, fixing his bangs after tying up his hair in a high ponytail.

"That sounds perfect actually," Ten confesses.

Yuta nods enthusiastically. "A nap is a must after coming here." He takes his bag from the locker. "Let's go!"

Yuta, being the sweetheart he is, takes Ten back to the hotel even after listening to Ten complaining about how he didn't have to drop him off every single time for the nth time in this tour. Yuta gives him a smile saying it would be rude if he left Ten by himself in a city he didn't know.

They part ways, with a promise of seeing each other in a while, and Yuta telling him to dress up to impress. 'Wear all the makeup you like. Don't restrain yourself, Tennie' to which he answered by daring him to do a full makeup as well, Yuta only looks at him skeptically before nodding.

Needless to say, Ten falls asleep but not before setting his alarm to a decent hour to get ready comfortably.

He wakes up feeling recharged, the nap really was the cherry on top to tie up the spa day. Feeling better than ever he turns on some music, wanting to listen to a bit of pop while he gets ready. He laughs at himself, since when is this the kind of music he listens to? Turning his speaker on, and thanking whoever owns this hotel for making the rooms soundproof, he marches to the bathroom.

The mirror is big and the lights are very good, he climbs to the counter, sitting down with his legs crossed. Perfect. He clips his bangs off his forehead, priming his skin and eyelids before getting started because not priming is a crime. He decides to go with a soft glam look with shimmers and some rhinestones that he found at the bottom of his makeup pouch, that he's pretty sure belong to Lisa.

He starts drawing his eyebrows, going for a feathery look, patting a warm toned brown on his crease, using a lighter brown to blend it out and giving it a foxy eyed shape. He draws his winged eyeliner with a pencil and smokes it out with black eyeshadow for a more sultry look. Afterwards he packs his lid with a champagne color and coats it with an iridescent white glitter. He puts lash glitter on his crease, pressing tiny rhinestones into it, creating an arch. Satisfied with the result, he applies mascara, and moves on to the face. Going for a more natural finish, he adds cushion foundation, concealer, a little bit creme contour and a lot of blush on his cheeks and nose. He sets his face with powder products and finally reaches for his highlighter; he wants to shine tonight so he puts on a lot. He applies his all-time favorite gloss bomb for the lips, figuring his eyes will be the main attraction. Looking at himself in the mirror, he finishes with setting spray and prays for it to last all night as the product's description promises.

He gets down from the counter, and goes back to the room. Now he has to figure out what to wear, he rummages through the bags of what they bought, and then throws them on top of the bed to make it easier to ensemble the final outfit.

He goes for a sparkly black mesh long sleeved shirt, leather pants that hugs his frame tightly and black boots. Putting on all of the jewelry he bought and combining it with the ones he already had, he decides to style his hair upwards to show off his forehead, to make his eyes easier to appreciate. He sprays some perfume and he's ready to go, gluing the rhinestones took most of the time.

Immediately after he gets a text from Yuta, he's waiting for him downstairs.

He was truly not expecting what he is just witnessing right now. If Yuta looked good with his daily outfits, he definitely looks irresistible like this. He really took Ten's dare seriously because the man in front of him looks like the purest form of art.

His hair is wavy and parted to the side with sparkly bobby pins keeping it from falling on his face. His eyes look like fairy dust, fuchsia shimmery eyeshadow blended on his eyelids smoked out at the outer corner and lower lash line with a dark purple. The rest of the face is matte and his lips are glossy. He's wearing a see-through black chiffon turtleneck blouse that has black gems dangling from the neck to the shoulder; Ten can clearly see his navel piercing. Paired with high waisted fitted glittery black pants and boots. Looking like Ten's wildest dreams.

"You look stunning," Ten breathes out, a second too early for his mind to process what he’s saying.

Yuta looks at him with wide eyes that quickly turn into crescents. "I spent too many hours doing this, I'm glad you like it," he says making a pose with his hands on his hips.

"You're such a dork." He laughs, "let's go."

"Why are you in such a rush? You won't even let me tell you how dashing you look tonight?" Yuta pouts.

"Stop that," Ten croaks embarrassed.

Yuta starts laughing, as if Ten being flustered is the best joke he’s ever heard. Ten looks at him with a frown and a sarcastic rebuttal at the tip of his tongue but he notices Yuta's cheeks are kind of red, so he lets it slide.

_Red, hot pink, purple, blue._

The club they arrive to is a huge three-story building, with two red doors at the front and a disturbingly long queue. He can already hear the music playing inside, a heavy EDM rhythm.

"How are we gonna get in? The line is insane."

"I made a reservation, who do you think I am?" He grabs Ten's hand and walks proudly to the entrance.

A man on a black suit is guarding the door with a stern expression and an iPad in his hands.

"Name," he says in a monotonous voice.

"Nakamoto Yuta," Yuta sing-songs.

The man in the black suit nods, checks his iPad, hums and lets them in. "VIP section is in the 3rd floor," he adds.

VIP? They’re going to the VIP section? Exactly how rich is this man? He looks at Yuta, who is now smiling from ear to ear as the music gets louder every single step they take.

The first floor is the dance floor, a wide space full of strobe lights of different colors, and filled with bodies moving to the rhythm of music, as if someone casted a spell on them. Ten's muscles reacting almost immediately, it's been ages since he danced.

"Want some drinks first?" Yuta’s bobbing his head in sync with the bass of the music playing in the background.

"Sure." Maybe a drink or two can give him the confidence boost to hit the dancefloor.

The VIP section is unsurprisingly fancy. The room has at least 10 rectangular tables with black leather couches to sit and chat while enjoying a good drink. The bar is in the center, with neon light signs and displaying a wide range of alcoholic drinks. Marble counter and high black stools.

A waiter asks for Yuta's name to guide them to their table and hands them a menu. Most of the drinks have weird names, even if it weren’t for the Japanese its written in, he’s sure he wouldn’t have the slightest clue of what to order without Yuta, self-proclaimed expert.

He lets Yuta choose the first round of drinks, already regretting it. Yuta orders something called tap water, he thinks its best if he doesn’t know what’s in it. What arrives looks better than expected, it's a clear bubbly drink with fruits inside.

"Don't let the appearance trick you," Yuta warns as he takes his drink.

Now Ten is a little bit scared, he looks at his drink again and thinks _fuck it_ , he should let loose sometimes. He takes a sip, it initially tastes like citric but when he swallows it burns his throat on its way down.

"It's vodka with tequila and an energy drink with fruits," Yuta says nonchalantly while he tries not to choke.

He notices the place is almost empty, barely 3 other tables occupied. Is the VIP section that expensive? Because he can hear the commotion downstairs. He stands up with his drink goes to the balcony, where he has a clear view to the first floor. It's full, people in Osaka really know how to party, it's Wednesday but the place is packed. Downstairs looks chaotic, but he wants to join it.

He finishes his drink and feels it make effect, he feels lighter. He goes back and sits down next to Yuta, forgetting to keep a safe distance.

"Drink up," he whispers to Yuta's ear. "I want to dance."

Yuta drinks and puts the empty glass on the table. "Sure thing, Tennie."

Both of them stand up and start walking downstairs. At some point, Yuta places his hand on Ten's waist, pulling him closer.

Once they reach to the dancefloor it's a blur. The music is addictive, he lets himself go. Yuta's hold on his waist becomes stronger as Ten faces him and starts moving his hips slowly guided by the beat of the loud music. Yuta is quick to mimic his moves at first, but it doesn’t last much before he starts dancing with his own style. Yuta really knows how to dance, his body is fluid like water with the occasional sharp move. And the faces he makes, can someone please help Ten, it must be a sin to witness him dancing.

His eyes are closed most of the time, only opening them to look at him intensely, as if he were trying to say something with his gaze. Something that Ten can't allow himself to imagine, but hell how he wants it. Yuta pulls him closer, maybe he saw him drifting away, he’s quickly pulled back to reality. He's pressed to Yuta's body, no distance between them, he can smell Yuta's perfume, something flowery but intoxicating, maybe jasmines. Ten can't even think properly, his mind can only process the proximity and warmth of Yuta's body. He looks at him, and Yuta's already staring back; as if a switch were turned on, Ten leans in.

Ten feels like his mind has been painted with hues of pink and purple, strangely familiar to the colors Yuta is wearing on his eyes, all corners painted in dull colors disappearing and replaced with vivid pinks and ultraviolet. Yuta's lips are soft like rose petals, except petals don’t move and he can feel lips moving against his own.

Underneath the neon lights, they kiss.

When they pull apart all he feels is bliss and comfort, as if this kiss where the last piece in the puzzle of their relationship. Ten smiles at him and Yuta smiles back, biting his lip. They keep dancing because the night is still young, but now there’s lingering touches and butterfly kisses here and there. Ten feels like he left all of his restraints locked in a drawer back at the hotel room, he feels free again, like he can do everything he has been wanting to. So, he just dances, in a trance guided by Yuta's presence and a heavy bass.

They go back to their table, order more drinks; Yuta insists on trying on some kamikaze shots, Ten doesn't even argue, he only cares about being close to Yuta again, which is why sitting on his lap is a genius idea. "Hello, beautiful." He leans closer.

Yuta laughs, and his laugh is painfully melodious. "I thought you'd never open up to me."

Ten looks at him, Yuta's eyes are a beautiful shade of cinnamon, equally sweet and warm. How could he not open up to him? When he's just so easy going, so fun to be with. "I just needed to find the courage."

Yuta nods and takes Ten's face with his hands. "You're stunning," he breathes closely to his face and goes for another kiss. Ten is enjoying the sweet pecks Yuta gives him, he just giggles every time Yuta pecks his lips, his cheeks and his nose.

Their round of shots arrives, the waiter puts them on a table in two rows. 5 for him and 5 for Yuta, he’s so ready to beat Yuta.

Yuta asks the waiter to count to three to signal the starting time. At three, Ten frantically begins drinking from his row. He ends up losing, these shots taste like lemon and are very bitter but that didn't stop Yuta from inhaling them like a vacuum.

Ten is more than tipsy after drinking them so fast, but Yuta is already ordering another round. Just how high is his alcohol tolerance? Because this man looks absolutely fine.

Three rounds of shots later and Ten is glued to Yuta's lap, no one would've been able to separate them no matter how hard they tried. He can feel Yuta's hand securing his waist, and his thumb drawing circles on the skin. They have been playfully kissing and making jokes, in their own little bubble. Advantages of being at the VIP section he guesses, nobody can tell them anything. At some point they hit the dance floor again, Ten too drunk to remember it clearly, only perking up for however long the song playing lasts.

Yuta sends Ten in a cab back to the hotel. With uncoordinated steps he is able to get in front of the car, not wanting to leave Yuta just yet. With a promise of coming later for lunch, he convinces Ten to let him go and get into the taxi.

🌸🌸

The day of his meeting with Nayu is finally here, Ten could barely sleep last night, thinking about the outcome of it. He watched the sunrise this morning, already ordered his breakfast, even if he doesn’t know if he'll be able to eat it. He walks around the room with a mug of tea. It's too early, he has too many hours for his mind to consider all and every possible thing that could happen. He hates it.

The last couple of days went by too quick; after that night when he went clubbing with Yuta their relationship has evolved to something more than just friends, because friends don't kiss, right? Or maybe they do? Ten’s not sure at this point. The day after the club, he remembers waking up with an impending headache and so nauseous he was lucky to get to the bathroom in time. Just remembering it gives Ten a phantom headache, he’s never drinking with Yuta again. He came by Ten's room later that day with lunch and they spent the afternoon cuddled up watching movies. They spent the days after that one, visiting a lot of touristic places together, with a small upgrade, because he could now hold Yuta's hand.

With just the simple thought of Yuta, Ten feels slightly better. He puts his mug down, and looks for his phone. He goes back to the conversation he had with Yuta last night, where he sent a disturbing amount of crying cat stickers saying he had a work meeting the next day. Ten told him it was okay, he had deadlines to meet too. He wonders if Yuta is already awake, he wants to talk to him. Ten doesn't know when he became so clingy.

He decides to text Yuta at the end, he sends 'good morning sunshine' and a smiley cat emoji. Yuta's reply is almost instant, a My Melody sticker with hearts. Ten laughs at it, where does he get all those cute stickers? He apparently took too long to reply because he already has an incoming video call from Yuta.

Who opens with, "Why are you up so early?" He’s sitting on a table with a plate of food in front.

"Couldn't sleep well," Ten replies.

Yuta takes a bite of his food, then looks at the screen. "You should rest later, after your work."

Ten hums, "at what time is your meeting?"

"3:00pm, but I need to sort some things before." His expression is pained. "I'm sorry we couldn't go to the aquarium today."

"We can still go tomorrow."

"I guess you're right." Yuta takes another bite, Ten's getting hungry just looking at him.

Some knocks on the door distract Ten from his thoughts. "Oh! My food is here," Ten chirps, "hold on a second." He takes his breakfast to the desk and then goes back to pick his phone. "I'm back"

"Sweet, we're gonna have breakfast together."

"I wasn't even hungry until I saw you eating," Ten confesses.

"Then it's a good thing that I called."

_Green, yellow, orange, caramel brown._

The entrance of Bird Coffee is made out of bricks and greenery. Plants adorning the outside of the building with dark glass windows and creme walls, makes it look cozy and warm. He’s five minutes early, afraid of getting lost on the way.

Inside the coffee shop, the lights are yellow and dimmed, creating a comfortable atmosphere to spend your afternoon. Mahogany tables and black metallic stools filled the place accompanied with acoustic background music.

His last email said he must say he's here for a meeting with Nayu, he walks with heavy steps to the big wooden counter. There, a man in his mid-thirties welcomes him.

"I'm here for a meeting with Nayu," he blurts out.

The man in front of him nods. "Let me take you to the private table. Follow me, please."

Ten starts walking behind him, the man stops when they reach a big glass door at the end of a hallway.

"The meeting will take place in this room, I'll be back in a few minutes with your menu," he says and walks away.

Ten is left alone, his heart beating so fast he feels it's going to stop at any second. His palms are sweating. In an attempt to collect himself, he takes a deep breath before grabbing the handle and opening the door. He doesn't know what he was expecting but it was certainly not this.

_Pink_.

It doesn't make any sense. Why does he know the person sitting right in front of him? Why is this person also looking at Ten with wide eyes and an open mouth? Why isn’t he saying anything? It looks like time has stopped.

But then again, it does start to make sense.

Canvases painted with vibrant colors, portraying his own personality. His soul is a palette of vibrant blues, greens, yellow and red. Thick and strong brush strokes, how he's perceived from the outside. Brush strokes that look clumsy but are in fact calculated, how he's sometimes messy but does everything with confidence. He's always full of spirit, fearless, spontaneous and thinks out of the box. Ten feels stupid for not realizing it earlier, of course Nayu couldn't be anyone other than Yuta. His paintings speak that in volumes, how earnest he's when doing them.

Judging by the face Yuta is making, he had no idea Ten was going to be here. He looks completely taken aback. His lips are a thin line but his eyes look uneasy, as if he doesn't know what to say.

"Hello Nayu, is good to finally meet you," he says trying to ease the atmosphere.

"You're Li Yongqin?" Yuta asks in a small voice.

"Maybe we should sit down first."

Ten finally takes a look at the room; it looks like the rest of the coffee shop, wooden floor, dark walls and big glass windows. The table is also mahogany but instead of stools there are two big brown couches. He takes a seat in front of Yuta.

"Ten?"

"Why are you so surprised? It's not like my face is unknown like yours."

"I usually never check what the artist I admire look like, it ruins the image I have of them," Yuta confesses.

"Did I ruin the image you had of me?" Ten asks with a shaky voice. He's more nervous than before.

"Actually, I think you made it better."

"Why?"

"Now that I know you, I think your artworks make more sense to me." Yuta says.

"My art has been suffering for a while now."

"Isn't that why you're here in Japan? Trying to overcome that slump?"

"You're smart," Ten states.

"I noticed your art started becoming gloomier since a while ago. First I thought it was a new style but –," Yuta stops.

"But what? Then it just kept being like that?"

"Yeah," Yuta croaks.

"It has been difficult for me to get my work done, I think I lost myself in the process."

"Why Japan?"

"Because you're from here," Ten confesses quietly.

Yuta looks at him directly, as if he doesn't understand what Ten is trying to say.

"I came to Japan because I was looking for Nayu, the most promising Japanese painter of our generation.

"Your art is the complete opposite of mine. I wanted to know how you do it, how you manage to engrave your soul in every painting." When he looks back at Yuta, his eyes look sad but he keeps quiet so Ten keeps talking.

"I didn't perceive sadness in your paintings, only positive emotions. At least, that's what I thought at the beginning." Ten pauses, takes a breath and continues. "But then, I visited your exhibition in Osaka and one painting left me in tears."

Yuta remains silent, waiting for Ten to pick the right words. "But it's different, you still used colors. Like you were sad but with you were hopeful about getting out of it."

"That's how it should be, Ten. It's okay to be sad. It's a normal emotion for us, but you should try to get better nonetheless, to pick yourself up somehow. Either alone or with help from others. Let your goal be to get away from the grayscale.

"I chose to keep my identity unknown because I wanted my art to be appreciated solely because of its meaning and not because it's attached to a specific person.

"Also, I don't like crowds so I'm so glad my sister decided to help me there." Yuta laughs.

Ten lets out a chuckle, finally able to laugh about what’s been happening to him.

"Nayu is short for Nakamoto Yuta, isn't it? How didn’t I notice before?"

"It is. Now you gotta explain to me why you have a Chinese name," Yuta pushes.

"Oh, that's because my thai name is too long, so my assistant suggested that I use chinese because it's shorter."

"Your assistant? You've had the same one all this time?"

"Yes, Kun is my best friend apart from being my assistant."

Yuta nods and suddenly his stomach grumbles. "I'm hungry, we should order. The doughnuts here are delicious."

Ten laughs, Yuta is so genuine. He really doesn't hide much (aside from his secret artist identity he supposes), always tells what he's thinking.

_Pink, yellow, green, blue._

In any other occasion, Ten would've really been mad to be awake so early, but he agreed to go hiking with Yuta even if that meant having to rise with the sun. He can't be completely upset though; the park is picturesque, the air is clean and Yuta is busting with too much happiness for someone who woke up at the crack of dawn. Ten checked out from his hotel two days after the meeting, with Yuta insisting he should stay at his apartment so Ten can stop spending so much money on the hotel room. There's something about Yuta that Ten can't really say no to. He’s starting to think it's due to his sparkly eyes and blinding smiles. And thus here he is, completely whipped for a man who wakes up at 5am and insists on going for a hike.

The trail goes across a valley, adorned at both sides by foliage, colored with colors ranging from pinks to yellows and greens, like a painting. The scene suits Yuta, who blends well with the surroundings and Ten’s absolutely sure that the sun is in love with him because it gives his skin such a lovely golden glow to his skin that his fingers itch to paint it. Ten didn't think it was possible for someone to look so ethereal. If they were inside a fantasy book, Yuta would be a forest fairy without a doubt.

They keep walking until the trail opens into building and a temple. Ten is truly amazed by its architecture, he takes some pictures of it and tries to sneakily capture Yuta in some of his shots.

They keep walking for approximately forty minutes until they reach the end of the trail. This is honestly the most impressive thing in this park, the end of the trail is a waterfall. The water looks sparkly as it is hit by the sunrays. It falls gracefully like a veil into the crystal-clear pool at the bottom orchestrating such a celestial melody. Pictures won't make it any justice but Ten tries anyways. He makes Yuta pose in front of it so he could capture how breathtaking he looks, successfully placing two beauties in one frame.

Yuta also demands Ten to pose in front of the waterfall, saying something like he needed to capture his memories from Osaka. As if Ten is ever going to forget about this paradise. A young girl seems to take a pity on them and offers to take a picture of them.

"Sure." Yuta beams. He gives the camera to the girl and walks to where Ten is. Yuta stands by his side, grabs his waist and makes a peace sign with the other hand. Ten follows his antics and copies his pose.

The girl counts to three, and they smile.

"Another pose," she says a little too excited.

Yuta kisses Ten's cheek and laughs. Apparently, the picture is a success because the girl is giggling, pretty satisfied with her job as she gives them the camera back. Ten thanks her before she leaves.

"What was that?" Ten asks in between giggles.

"Was it wrong? You seemed to enjoy it," Yuta teases him.

"You're getting bold."

"I've always been bold."

And Ten couldn't agree more.

Yuta offers to make lunch, so they stop by a supermarket to get the ingredients for ‘the best okonomiyaki you’ve ever tasted’ in Yuta’s words. It’s not that Ten doesn’t believe him but he knows his man tends to be a little bit messy in the kitchen, both eating and cooking.

The apartment is exactly what Ten imagined it would be once he started knowing Yuta better. An open space, white walls, a leather couch facing the huge glass windows that offer an astounding view. Canvases scattered around the living room, paint tubes and pans scattered through all parts of the floor, shelves filled with more paints and brushes. Yuta uses his living room as his studio because he says the light and the view are the best from there, and Ten has to agree. He sits on the couch, taking in the landscape in front of him; a sense of nostalgia passes by him fastly, he’ll really miss this place. He can listen to the clashing of pans, the sound of frying oil, and Yuta’s voice singing a song he can’t decipher.

“Ten, can you set the table? Food is almost ready,” he hears Yuta say from the kitchen.

“On my way.”

Ten sets the table, that’s only big enough for two. Yuta appears with a big plate and places it on the table before going back to the the kitchen. This okonomiyaki looks pretty good, Ten’s impressed, he can’t wait to try it. Yuta comes back with two glasses of juice and finally sits down. He quickly serves Ten a portion and then he remains silent, clearly waiting for Ten to give him the final verdict. Ten takes a small bite, and absolutely delicious, he wasn’t expecting something of this quality. He starts nodding so Yuta can understand that he likes it because he looks like he’s waiting for a death sentence.

“It’s delicious,” he says while he covers his mouth.

Yuta looks stunned, Ten can see the exact moment where his cheeks start to get flushed. Cute. He really wants to kiss his pink cheeks, so he does, pecking his cheek.

“Let’s eat... The food is going to get cold,” Yuta stutters.

When they’re done, both of them head to the kitchen and automatically fall into their new but comfortable routine, Yuta washes the dishes while Ten cleans up the rest of the kitchen. When did he start feeling at home here, another question he can’t quite answer.

“I was thinking we could paint this afternoon,” Yuta breaks the silence.

Ten stops cleaning and looks at his direction, Yuta is not looking at him, his eyes are glued to the sink but his hands are still, letting the water flow down.

“I don’t know,” Ten sighs.

Yuta is suddenly by his side, holding Ten’s face between his hands. “You’ll do great, I know it.”

Ten hates it, he doesn’t understand why he’s so scared of grabbing a paintbrush again. He did decently with the digital works last time, why should this be any different? Is he self-conscious because Yuta will see it? No, that’s not it, he trusts Yuta, it feels like he doesn’t trust himself with his own art anymore.

Yuta reaches out to wipe a tear tenderly from his cheek; Ten didn’t realize he was crying.

“If you don’t want then it’s totally fine” Yuta says and runs his hands through Ten’s hair.

“I’ll do it,” Ten trying to sound confident.

“Are you sure?”

“I have work to finish... I can’t keep hiding.”

_Red, orange, yellow, turquoise._

Yuta assembles an easel for Ten while he’s in charge of looking for a good playlist to listen to while they paint. Once he’s done, Yuta looks for medium sized canvas for both of them and gathers the brushes and paint tubes.

They settle down comfortably, jazz playing in the background and the afternoon light reflecting through the windows. Yuta has done everything to make him feel at ease, but it feels like the blank canvas in front of him is mocking him for not being able to paint on it. He sighs, apparently very loudly because Yuta is by his side in a flash asking him if he’s ok. He nods, it’s just difficult to start without a clue of what should he do.

“Don’t think too hard about it.” Ten looks at his direction and his canvas already has blue all over.

Yuta is right, if he starts over thinking he might never start. He picks a thin brush and dips it in black paint. When the brush touches the canvas, he forgets about everything else, as if his brain restarts and the only thing in his mind is the idea he wants to transfer from his brain into a painting. Delicate strokes of black paired with thick lines and soft curves, slowly start to take the form of wings joined by a bouquet of flowers in the middle.

Ten puts his brush down, and observes his painting, it’s beautiful but dead, like a bundle of pressed flowers. He glances at Yuta, his painting is a party of colors that join together to form flowers and leaves, blurring the lines between splatters of color and realistic forms.

“How?”, Ten speaks in a barely audible voice.

Yuta seems to hear him because he looks at Ten’s direction, his eyes go wide and he smiles. “Ten, that’s beautiful.”

He doesn’t know if Yuta is being just nice to him or if he truly likes it. “I hate it, it looks empty.”

“No way, I love it!”

“It looks dull and gloomy compared to yours, don’t you think?”

“Well, wanna try coloring it?”

“Coloring it?”

“Yes, you can start with three colors.”

“Three colors. Ok, I can do that,” Ten mutters.

“What colors do you like?”

“Pink,” Ten blurts out.

Yuta laughs, picks a soft pink paint. He nods.

“Maybe another soft tone,” Yuta says while looking for another tube. “What about seafoam green?” Another nod.

Ten picks the third color, a darker blue that looks like a desaturated cyan. Together the colors look good, he’s not exactly sure how is it going to end up looking but he trusts Yuta. Unsure of where to start, he lets Yuta guide him through the process, pays attention while he explains where a pop of colors would look good and where can he apply the darker one as shading.

It turns out using colors is more fun than he thought, he can see the painting getting more vivid as he lets his hand explore the canvas and settles for a spot to color. What started as a dull drawing is now transforming to a kaleidoscope of pinks and greens. When he is satisfied with his result, he stands up; his back aches and his legs feel like jelly. He didn’t notice Yuta leaving his assigned work space, but then he emerges from the kitchen with two mugs of what he suspects is tea. They find their place on the couch again, Yuta’s legs spread out to let Ten sits between them with his back is pressed to Yuta’s chest feeling it rise every time he breathes. It’s jasmine tea, maybe it’s his favorite?

“I can see you like jasmines…”

“How did you find out?” Yuta laughs.

“Oh, I don’t know!” Ten faces Yuta. “Maybe it’s because your perfume smells like jasmines, there a jasmine plant on your balcony and now we are drinking jasmine tea.”

Yuta laugh harder as he goes on, a melodious sound Ten would love to hear at every hour of the day.

“You’re right, it’s my favorite.”

🌸🌸

That's how they spend most of the days, going out in the mornings to explore the rest of the city, and painting in the afternoons. Sometimes they eat lunch out, since neither of them is what you would call a cooking expert. Ten thinks his isolation time killed whatever cooking prowess he had cultivated. At this point, Ten has become an expert in (ordering) Japanese cuisine, with Yuta’s help, of course. He has also visited every park and temple in the city, with the best guide ever. Yuta is a hardworker through and through, tries his best every time he takes Ten out.

Ten meets with Yuta's family regularly, sometimes for lunch other times to chat over a cup of coffee. His older sister treats Yuta like a child, and he can’t blame her, Yuta surely acts like it most of the time. Both Kahoru and their mom thank Ten for keeping him company, they were worried because of how much time he spent alone, buried in work. Even if it's for a short time, he’s glad to be able to be beside Yuta. If anything, he’s the one who has been taught the most – to smile more, to appreciate your surroundings, to be more sincere with himself; he even guided him back to painting. An angel in disguise.

And like a bucket of cold water poured over him, he realizes he needs to go back to Thailand soon after a call from Kun informing him with regret in his voice that he can't keep pushing back the deadline and that they can't keep the orders closed forever. It makes him sad, he’s still not ready to leave his sun's side. Most of the paintings are already done, he sends them over to Kun in hopes of gaining more time here with Yuta. It gives him a momentary reassurance, but that's enough for him right now.

"You're thinking too hard," Yuta says, eyes trained to the TV screen.

They're at Yuta's room, another white painted space with a huge bed with white sheets, facing a wide glass window with dark curtains. It's the only place of the house that's not stained with paint. Some potted plants are placed near the window, there's a desk with papers scattered around it, a book shelf and the TV is on the wall.

"Even my thoughts are too loud." He chuckles bitterly.

"We're gonna make it work, if that's what is bothering you."

"How?" Ten pleads.

"I think technology is advanced enough. Also, the time difference isn’t that big." He pauses the movie he was watching.

"I can go to Thailand and you can come back here. It's not that we can't travel back and forth when we get some time off."

"You're right. And I know this is silly, but it's just that I want to be with you every day, to wake up by your side every morning," Ten says deflated.

Yuta moves closer to his side, and envelopes Ten in a tight hug. He knows Yuta is also afraid of what's gonna happen in the future, but he’s right, they will make it work and he’ll do this part. Ten has to trust both of them.

"You know, I really enjoyed my time here. I think I painted the best works of my entire career with you."

"You're giving this place, and me, too much credit, you were already an amazing artist."

"I lost myself, thank you for helping me finding my way back." He kisses Yuta sweetly. "It's still not perfect but I'll get there," Ten says confidently.

"I'm sure you will." Yuta snuggles closer, until half of his body is on top of Ten's. "I think the paintings you did here are perfect as there are."

"What's your favorite one?"

"The pink and purple forest, I don’t know what God you prayed to, to blend black with those vibrant colors, but I love it." Yuta confesses. "What’s yours?"

"My favorite canvas is you, Yuta"

Ten closes the distance between them and kisses Yuta's lips. He is never going to get tired of this sensation, the mixture of pinks and oranges, just like a setting sun, at that exact time when the sky looks its warmest, with hues of red, pink and orange. A moment before it turns dark. Yuta tastes like jasmines, his lips are soft like the petals but he kisses with passion, like a mixture of vibrant yellow and blue, no hesitation.

Just like that, he’s the perfect canvas, the one Ten prefers and is grateful to have the honor of painting. He paints him with his hands and his mouth, not leaving a single spot untouched. And what a masterpiece is Yuta, leaving the rest of the paintings in shame. He can be the reason for any artist to succumb to madness, but today he’s all Ten’s.

_Indigo, teal, yellow, pink._

Yuta takes Ten on one final date, one that he has been looking forward to since Yuta mentioned the view at the Ferris Wheel at night was magical. He just didn’t expect this date to start so early, but here they are, hand in hand walking to the National Museum of Art. The building’s architecture is dramatic, its structure is made of silver bars, mimicking the ears of a rabbit. The metal tubes are modeled after bamboo, at least that’s what Yuta told him.

The exhibitions take place at the last two underground levels, but the brochure recommends that they start on the second floor. Yuta insists on forgetting said brochure and that Ten should trust him to be his guide through the tour. The hallways are wide and mostly empty, leaving only the two of them surrounded by art, creating the best scenery. With nobody else disturbing their perfect harmony, they dance together through every painting and sculpture at a slow tempo, taking the time to analyze and admire each piece. Just like that, after what it felt like minutes, they end up at the museum's coffee shop. Mug in hand, Ten hums contentedly.

"I take it you enjoyed the exhibitions." Yuta says with a laugh.

"Loved them, loved coming here with you."

"Time flies so fast when you're here, it's been almost three hours." Yuta points out.

"I totally forgot about time," Ten confesses.

They both laugh, the time they spend together is so precious time becomes subjective. Yuta finishes his coffee first, places his hand under his chin and looks at Ten.

"Hurry up, I want to buy something from the gift shop." Yuta pouts.

Ten obeys, sips his remaining coffee and puts the cup back on the table. "I'm done."

The trip to the gift shop is short, Yuta doesn’t let go of his hand, they enter the store in tandem. Ten doesn't get to roam around, since Yuta takes him to a very specific spot to show him some tote bags, with prints of various artworks that are exhibited. They look nice and fit Ten's style; he guesses that's why Yuta wanted him to see them first. He chooses the one he likes the most, a black one with the print in the middle and flowers framing it. Yuta picks one that's similar in white and the frame are not flowers but leaves.

The restaurant Yuta picks for dinner is classy; a small place with only space to fit a few tables, it looks exclusive, with refined wooden tables, colorful paintings plastered on pristine walls and yellow lights. It's one of those places where the chef surprises you with a seasonal dish, Ten’s intrigued. They take a seat near the kitchen, to have the best view of the food that’s going to be served. Sophisticated plates keep arriving, they look so immaculate that he almost feels bad about having to eat them. Fish decorated delicately with multi-colored flowers and other greens, looking like a bundle of wild flowers rather than his dinner.

"How did you even manage to make a reservation here?" Ten whispers to Yuta's ear.

"The owner is a good client of mine."

"You didn't have to do all this."

"Of course I have to, you're leaving tomorrow," he mutters.

Right. He almost forgot about that. He's leaving Osaka tomorrow. Suddenly he’s not hungry anymore, his appetite gone after being reminded of the fact that he’s leaving the best place on earth and his favorite person.

"Hey! Don't get sulky, it is absolutely forbidden." Yuta shoots him a smile.

"You're right." Ten is not letting anything ruin his date with Yuta, sadness is postponed until further notice. "It'll be a waste if I don't try this very expensive food my lovely boyfriend got for me, am I right?"

"That's the attitude," Yuta chimes.

Food is delicious, unsurprisingly considering even the presentation was marvelous. They get served many different plates, even though these fancy restaurants only serve small portions; but with the amount of times the waiter has appeared with more and more dishes Ten doesn’t even notice. They even got served wine, chosen by the chef himself, a well-aged red wine that tastes like heaven.

After laughter and retelling of old anecdotes from their past years, the wine bottle is over and the food nowhere to be seen. As they walk to the exit, a tall man that doesn't look much older than himself, stops them.

"Nakamoto-kun, it’s good to see you!" He greets Yuta with a warm smile.

"Adachi-kun, long time no see." Yuta smiles back.

"You need to come to the restaurant more often, don't go missing on us," he says jokingly. "Oh?" The man looks at Ten, "and who do I have the pleasure of meeting tonight? My apologies for being rude."

"No problem, I'm Li Yongqin," Ten says, extending his hand to greet him.

"Li Yongqin? The painter?" He asks surprised.

"Yes, that's me."

"It's an honour. I'm Adachi Yuto, the owner of this restaurant. I hope the food was of your liking."

"The food was delicious, I'm glad he brought me here," he says while looking at Yuta.

Adachi shoots Yuta a small smile, "Nakamoto-kun, you're finally growing up, it's the first time you bring a date."

Ten flushes instantly. Adachi Yuto is very observant. He doesn't know if that's good or bad.

"Stop that, Adachi-kun." He gives Adachi a weak punch on his shoulder. "I'll get going then, thanks for the food." Yuta grabs Ten's hand and walks with a quick pace out of the restaurant.

"Sorry about him, he spends too much time with my sister."

"It's ok, it was kinda funny." Ten laughs.

_Midnight blue, navy, violet, pink, white_.

Their last stop is the Tempozan Giant Ferris Wheel.

The night is always mystic, pitch dark skies and silvery gems, accompanied by a flawless constellation of city lights. The ferris wheel would've looked out of place if it weren't for the neon lights that decorate its structure and makes it harmonize with the rest of the lights.

He walks by Yuta's side, almost pressed to his side because they just forgot to bring a coat and his trying to leech off of how much warmth as he can. They quickly reach the bottom of the ferris wheel and get into their respective car. Anticipation fills Ten feels right now, he wants to check if what people say about Osaka's night view is right with his very own eyes. He sits close to Yuta, puts his head on Yuta's shoulder and intertwines their hands.

"You sure you wanna stay like that? You'll want to take pictures when we're up."

"Then I'll get up when we're that far, smart pants," Ten retorts.

"Fine, fine," Yuta says as the ferris wheel starts moving.

Ten just wants to enjoy this moment with Yuta, to engrave it into his mind. He’s not sure when he’ll be able to see Yuta again, since he has so much work to do, and he's sure Yuta will get busier as well, being an uprising artist and all. Video calls and chats will just not be the same as having him by his side. Waking up alone doesn't seem as appealing as it did before he came to Osaka. Cooking together, lazing around in the afternoons; he’s going to miss all that. Yuta's gentle voice, his concerts when he is taking a shower, the little smiles and even the pranks he plays sometimes.

"I'm also going to miss you," Yuta starts saying, as if he can read Ten's mind. "I think I'm gonna go crazy missing you, but we both have to trust each other so we can make this work." He looks directly at Ten's eyes, probably trying to find reassurance. Ten nods.

"We'll be fine."

The ferris wheel stops. They're at the highest point already.

"Look out of the window," Yuta whispers.

Ten takes a look, it's surreal. The city lights look like multicolored stars that adorn the night, their reflection also paint the dark water of the bay with bright yellows and pinks. Its colors vivid, as if the night in Osaka knows how to party just like the people who live here. Yuta was right, he wants to capture all of it into a picture, but with Yuta in it.

"Let me take a picture of you."

"Fine, but I want you right next to me, deal?" Yuta smiles.

That's how he ends up posing for a selfie with Yuta, struggling to get the background on the shot as well.

Ten is looking at the pictures he took when Yuta snatches his phone.

"Hey!" Ten points at him. "I was using it."

Yuta, with Ten's phone in hand, scoffs. "You can check them later, there are more important things to focus right now."

"And what would that be?"

"Me," Yuta says as he leans in to kiss Ten. What a cliché, them kissing at the top of the ferris wheel with a stunning view as background. That's how his life feels right now, a fantasy, that is going to end at any moment so he might as well take advantage of it while it lasts. He deepens the kiss, it's bittersweet. Both of them knowing this is going to be the last night they spend together for a while.

**A year later**.

The sunsets in Seoul are majestic. The sky is painted lilac and the clouds vary from violet to fuchsia, making a perfect brew of colors. From his hotel room, Ten can see how the lilac light reflects on the buildings, streets and captures the river as well, the water tinted with a soft mixture of purples. He likes this city.

After leaving Osaka, he went back to work, to finish the remaining commissions and to prepare for a new exhibition he reluctantly accepted after much needling from both Yuta and Kun. His latest works received many praises from experts and the general public. He even got offered to teach some workshops at various universities with strong art programs. In other words, he got busy _again_ , with no opportunities to leave the country whatsoever. But him and Yuta fell into a comfortable routine, morning video calls while having breakfast, random texts during the day and a call at night. It was nowhere near as good as seeing each other in person but it was what they could do at the moment. Yuta got busy too, as a new innovative painter, his last exhibition, entropy, got applauded by art critics. Most of his paintings’ popularity skyrocketed and got sold at very high prices. He was quickly prompted to start preparing new artworks. Ten thinks he totally deserves all the praise, he’s so proud of Yuta. He wishes he could see him right now to give him the kisses and hugs he deserves.

He was actually looking forward to this trip to South Korea for his friend's opening night for his new exhibition. Kang Seulgi, a renowned artist in Korea was finally returning to the art scene after a 3-year hiatus.

Both Yuta and Ten were invited to this event, they took the time to plan a small tour; three days in Seoul can really be enough if they manage it properly. All was good until Yuta called him yesterday saying he got to fix some issues with the staff of his exhibition, complaining about how much he missed working with the Solarium staff. He apologized like thirty times in 2 minutes while Ten tried to tell him it was okay, that he was going to Osaka for his exhibition anyways. To which Yuta answered that it wasn't fair because his exhibition was in a month, and he’s definitely gonna die of Ten deprivation.

Ten arrives at the gallery. Very interesting architecture; high ceilings, crystal chandeliers, dark walls and shiny white floors. He walks through the hall noticing a mirror in every corner. He looks at his reflection, his hair no longer black but a pearly blonde, styled to the side since it got a little longer, gold eyeliner and glossy lips. He’s wearing a burgundy suit Yuta helped him pick and a lot of gold jewelry. He keeps walking, there's a lot of people here, he wishes Yuta was here to hold his hand.

He gets to finally greet the woman of the night, with a quick hug and a short interaction since she's busy entertaining the media. Seulgi looks apologetic, telling him to enjoy the night and shooting him a small smile before being dragged away by what he guesses is her assistant judging by the frantic energy they carry. Right. He hasn't seen the exhibition yet. Well he can't go back to his hotel yet so he better get going. Grabbing a champagne flute from the nearest tray, he walks into this new world.

Seulgi outdid herself, not only paintings surround the area but also a couple sculptures. If Ten wasn't also a painter he would've missed the concept of this exhibition, to put it simply Miss Kang is in love. He chuckles, she isn't hiding it at this point. All of her artworks scream love, affection, admiration and respect. Lovely indeed.

_Black, blue, pastel pink, white_.

He makes his way to the next canvas, when he realizes there’s somebody else admiring it. From his distance he can only see that this person is wearing a navy satin suit and the side of their face, white long hair messily tied up in a half ponytail, prominent cheekbones and a sloped elegant nose.

Wait.

The suit looks exactly like the one Ten chose for Yuta to wear to this exact same event. Those are the features Ten has memorized in his heart, he could recognize that facial structure everywhere. Is he going insane? He doesn't remember Yuta mentioning that he dyed his hair. Also, he cannot be here, right? What kind of champagne are they serving that has him imagining Yuta? He is doubting himself until this person turns to Ten's direction.

There they are, staring back at him. Yuta's bright eyes, beautiful like the most expensive gems but warmer than the sun, unlike them.

Ten is paralyzed, rutted to his spot, unable to move his legs forward, unable to articulate words. How is this possible? He can only look at Yuta, hopefully he can understand he's trying to find an explanation. Yuta jogs to where he is, until he's finally in front of Ten.

"My plane landed just a while ago." Noticing Ten is still not responding he keeps talking. "I thought I wouldn't made it, but the meeting ended earlier than expected so I just grabbed my stuff and came here."

Ten opens his mouth, but no words come out. He just moves forward until he is finally embracing Yuta. He is so warm and smells like jasmines, as usual. He missed this so bad he could actually cry.

"I was looking for you but got distracted with that painting," Yuta says while breaking the hug. He looks at Ten and pecks his lips sweetly.

"I missed you." Ten finally finds his voice back. "I'm glad you are here."

Ten looks at Yuta's hair, and reaches out to touch it. He likes how this color compliments Yuta's skin tone. His skin looks more bronzed.

"When did you dye your hair?"

"This morning, if you’d believe it," he laughs. "My sister dragged me to the hair salon, saying I needed a change, probably to lighten up my mood."

"She always makes the best decisions," Ten agrees.

"I couldn't even put makeup on," Yuta complains. "By the way, you look dashing tonight, my love."

Ten still gets flustered by those comments. He tries to laugh it off, failing because Yuta coos at him telling him that his cheeks are red. He hates him.

"I'm sure someone from Seulgi's team has a makeup bag we could borrow. We need to fix your hair too." Ten starts walking with Yuta's hand on his.

He was right. Seulgi's assistant took them to a small dressing room and gave them a big pouch. Left them there with a quick 'have fun and close the door when you leave'

Ten sees a lot of pretty eye shadows, but goes for a deep blue shimmery one. Monochromatic looks are always on trend if you execute them well. He makes Yuta sit down and close his eyes. Ten primes Yuta's eyelids and then dips a flat brush on the eyeshadow and taps it on Yuta's lid, making a triangular shape at the outer corner of his eye, shaping it almost like a cat eye look. Then he does the same on the other eye. Yuta's skin is flawless, he only primes the face and applies cushion foundation on his T zone and sets it with powder. He goes for a coral blush and dabs it on his beautiful cheekbones. A little bit of gloss and he's good to go.

"I'm done, you can look now."

Yuta looks at the mirror and lets out a loud, "Wow, Ten. This is gorgeous."

"I think your face helps a little."

Yuta smiles at him. It's the kind of smile he gives Ten when they're alone, a smile no one else gets to see, the one that make Ten's knees go weak.

"What are we gonna do with my hair?"

"Tie it all up in a tight ponytail."

When they emerge back to the main hall, they go into a quest of finding Seulgi, Yuta wants to say hi to her since she doesn't know he did end up assisting. They eventually find her surrounded by press, she’s sitting on a long couch with a petite woman by her side, her features so delicate like a flower and skin as white as snow.

"Seulgi!" Yuta screams as he walks to her.

"Oh?" Seulgi stands up. "I thought you weren’t coming tonight Nayu," she says in a surprised tone.

Seulgi’s eyes go wide, realizing what she said; a gasp comes out from her mouth, she automatically slaps her mouth.

“I mean, Yuta-ssi,” she says in an attempt to fix the unfixable; but by then, it’s too late.

_Shit._

The press around them grows louder; asking for confirmation, is he really NaYu. Asking for explanations about him. Camera flashes blinding their vision, getting closer and closer. Yuta holds Ten's hand tighter.

"If you want to go, it's ok," Ten speaks quietly into his ear.

"It's fine." Yuta whispers. He then turns around and with his head held high says confidently, "My name is Nakamoto Yuta, better known as the painter Nayu."

Ten can feel Yuta's hand trembling in his, and his voice is kind of strained but other people wouldn't be able to tell. They don’t know him like he does.

"I have to say though, this is not the night to be asking about me. Focus on Miss Kang's marvelous exhibition instead," he sounds annoyed now. "If you excuse us, I'd rather spend time with my boyfriend." And walks away with Ten in tow.

Ten can only hear security guards escorting the media out of the gallery.

When they're at a safe distance, he breaks the silence.

"Are you okay?"

"It was nerve-wracking" Yuta admits. "But when I'm with you I feel like I can do anything."

Ten smiles, "Come here." He opens his arms so Yuta can hug him. "I love you."

Yuta looks at him and touches Ten's face softly.

"I love you too." A brief pause. "Wanna ditch this place? I'm kinda hungry."

Ten laughs, loud. Yuta is so endearing.

"Sure."

They leave the gallery using the back door, avoiding the press at the front.

The night is chilly, obsidian sky and beautiful city lights composing a magnificent. It seems like Yuta agrees with him, because he is humming contentedly while they walk, with no particular destination in mind.

"I like this city," Ten blurts out. "The sunsets are very pretty."

"Should we move in here after my exhibition?"

"Don't joke about that, Yuta," Ten begs.

"It's not a joke."

Ten stops dead in his tracks. "Are you serious?"

"Of course, my love." Yuta sing songs.

"You can't back off now, I have you on tape."

Yuta looks at him, "I can't wait to look for a house here with you."

Ten smiles, his heart is full. Seoul is going to be a fresh start for both of them. It's a new challenge, but he's sure they will be able to overcome them together. Their life is like a coloring book, and Ten's favorite color is pink.

**Author's Note:**

> Let's be friends on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/HSunHyuk)


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